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BY 

LOUISA    PARSONS    HOPKINS 

SUPERVISOR  BOSTON   PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

AUTHOR   OF    "HOW   SHALL   MY   CHILD    BE   TAUGHT"    "OBSERVATION    LESSONS 

IN    THE    PRIMARY    SCHOOLS"     "HANDBOOK    OF  THE   EARTH*' 

"  EDUCATIONAL  PSYCHOLOGY  "  ETC. 


miENORMALSCHOOL 


L0e 


BOSTON 
LEE  AND   SHEPARD    PUBLISHERS 

IO      MILK      STREET 
1892 


COPYRIGHT,  1892,  BY  LEE  AND  SHEPARD 


All  Rights  Reserved 


THB  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 


C.  J.  PETERS  &  SON, 

TYPOGRAPHERS  AND  EI.ECTROTYPERS, 

146  HIGH  STBEKT,  BOSTON 


Education 
Library 

LB 

n 


TO 

THE   FOLLOWING   LEADERS   OF   EDUCATIONAL   THOUGHT 

AND    METHOD,    WHOM    THE    AUTHOR    COUNTS 

AMONG  HER   FRIENDS   AND  INSPIRERS, 

2Tf)t9  Book  i&  Beotcateti: 

COL.  THOMAS  WENTWORTH  HIGGINSON 

MRS.  PAULINE  AGASSIZ  SHAW 
O 

GEN.  FRANCIS  A.  WALKER 

MRS.  MARY  HEMENWAY 

PRES.  JAMES  MACALISTER 


WORKS  BY 

LOUISA  PARSONS  HOPKINS, 

Teacher  of  Normal  Methods  ttt  the  Swain 
Free  School,  New  Bedford. 


HANDBOOK    OF    THE    EARTH.  — Natural 

Methods  in  Geography $0.50 

NATURAL-HISTORY     PLAYS.  —  Dialogues 
and    Recitations    for    School     Exhibitions. 

Boards net,       .30 

PSYCHOLOGY   IN   EDUCATION 50 

PRACTICAL  PEDAGOGY  ;  or,  The  Science  of 

Teaching  Illustrated net,     i.oo 

MOTHERHOOD.     Full  gilt 1.50 

BREATH  OF  THE  FIELD  AND  SHORE      .     1.25 
OBSERVATION    LESSONS    IN    THE     PRI 

MARY  SCHOOLS.   One  vol.   Cloth.     .    net,      .75 
Four  Parts.    Paper.    Each  Part 25 

LEE  AND  SHEPARD,  PUBLISHERS, 

BOSTON. 


PREFACE 


THE  various  addresses  which  make  up  this  vol- 
ume were  prepared  casually  since  the  author  has 
been  connected  with  the  Boston  schools,  for 
occasions  beyond  the  regular  demands  of  school - 
supervision,  the  only  official  document  being  the 
Supervisors'  Report  of  1889.  Such  courses  of  lec- 
tures and  talks  as  have  been  given  to  the  teachers 
in  the  discharge  of  more  formal  duties  may  at 
some  time  be  compiled  as  a  supplementary  book, 
more  direct  and  practical  in  its  nature  than  this. 

Notwithstanding  the  segregation  of  subject  in 
these  papers,  they  have  an  underlying  unity  of 
thought  and  motive  which  warrants  their  presen- 
tation as  an  educational  treatise.  They  are  an 
outgrowth  of  vital  relations  with  the  educational 
reforms  of  the  day ;  they  represent  advanced 
theories,  and  have  by  right  a  strong  flavor  of  dis- 
cussion and  active  participation  in  questions  con- 
stantly pressed  upon  the  consideration  of  thoughtful 
teachers  ;  this  gives  them  a  realistic  element,  and 

5 


6  PREFACE 

perhaps  too  strenuous  forms  of  expression.  If 
certain  lines  of  thought  are  reiterated  conspic- 
uously, it  is  because  they  are  forced  to  the  front 
by  the  needs  of  the  schools  and  the  demands  of 
progressive  ideals.  The  great  problem  of  the 
development  of  character  may  have  weighted  the 
expression  too  heavily,  but  its  importance  and 
that  of  the  law  of  evolution  of  the  moral  nature 
have  grown  into  the  author's  apprehension  as 
all-inclusive. 

The  necessity  for  a  clear  comprehension  of  the 
nature  and  growth  of  the  child  in  all  his  activities 
has  never  been  other  than  a  primal  fact  to  the 
author's  mind,  and  in  the  rich  opportunities  for  ob- 
servation which  present  associations  have  brought, 
this  necessity  has  been  demonstrated  and  illus- 
trated so  forcibly  as  to  add  earnestness  to  what- 
ever the  author  has  been  called  to  say  about 
educational  principles  and  methods. 

The  author's  grateful  thanks  are  due  to  those 
whose  names  appear  in  the  dedication  for  their 
most  ready  and  cordial  permission. 

L.  P.  H. 


CONTENTS 


MANUAL  TRAINING. 

Address  at  Opening  of  Mechanics'1  Fair,  1890  ....         9 

DISCUSSION  ON  KINDERGARTEN  AND  MANUAL  TRAINING. 

Remarks  at  the  Manual  Training  Conference,  1891       .       26 

PHYSICAL  TRAINING   A   MEANS  OF   MENTAL  AND   MORAL 
TRAINING. 

Address  before  the  Ladies'  Physiological  Institute,  1888  .       29 

THE  MORAL  PROBLEM  IN  THE  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS. 

Opening  of  Discussion  before  the  New  England  Woman's 
Club,  1889 50 

EDUCATION  OF  THE  SOUL. 

Address  before  the  Moral  Education  Association,  1890    .       60 

CHARACTER  AS  AN  OBJECT  OF  SCHOOL  EDUCATION. 

Address  before  the  Massachusetts    Teachers'1  Association, 
Nov.  26,  1887 72 

THE  RELATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL  TO  CITIZENSHIP. 

Address  to   Portland   Teachers  during  a   Presidential 
Election,  1888 .     .     102 

THE  SCHOOL  CURRICULUM. 

Address  before  the  Woman's  Educational  Association,  1890    1 22 

THE  RELATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL  TO  INDUSTRIAL  REFORM. 

Address  before  the  Social  Science  Club,  1890     ....      141 

WOMAN'S  WORK  IN  EDUCATION. 

Address  at  the  National  Teachers'  Convention       .     .     .     149 
7 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

THE  UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL  IN  EDUCATION. 

Address  before  the  Woman's  Educational  and  Industrial 
Union,  1889 161 

THE  GOSPEL  OF  MOTHERHOOD. 

Addresses  at  the  Graduation    of  Kindergarten   Normal 

Classes 185 

THE  RELATION  OF  THE  KINDERGARTEN  TO  SCHOOL  COURSES,  194 

FROEBEL'S  BIRTHDAY 200 

SECRET  OF  THE  KINDERGARTEN 205 

OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS. 

Address   before    the    Sunday    Coterie    of   the    Woman's 
Union,  1889 208 

EXTRACTS  FROM  REPORT  OF  BOARD  OF  SUPERVISORS,  1889,     226 

ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE. 

Address  before  the  New  England  Conference  of  Educa- 
tional Workers,  1892 252 

FROEBEL'S  EDUCATIONAL  THEORIES. 

Address  at  the  Swain  Free  School,  New  Bedford,  1882   .     262 


MANUAL    TRAINING 


ADDRESS  AT  OPENING   OF  MECHANICS'  FAIR 


MR.  PRESIDENT  :  It  is  good  to  know  how  early 
in  the  history  of  the  State  the  idea  of  industrial 
education  was  planted.  For  seventeen  successive 
triads  this  Association  has  presented  a  grand 
object-lesson  of  industrial  and  mechanical  training, 
of  progressive  achievement  in  practical  invention 
and  artistic  skill,  which  must  have  had  a  vast  edu- 
cative influence.  It  is  strange  that  our  pedagogi- 
cal leaders  have  not  seized  upon  the  lesson,  and 
incorporated  its  methods  in  the  schools,  more 
promptly  and  more  widely  than  we  can  boast  to-day. 

It  has  been  difficult  to  escape  from  the  tra- 
ditions of  an  exclusively  book  education.  The 
grammar  schools,  as  their  name  indicates,  have 
tied  the  child  to  the  dead  past,  and  confined  him 
to  the  mediaeval  form  of  brain  activity  and 
thought  expression,  until  his  connective  tissues 
have  ceased  to  be  sensitive  to  the  environment  of 
nature,  and  he  forgets  the  material  and  laws  that 
touch  him  on  every  side  :  he  observes  nothing ;  he 
discovers  nothing  ;  he  constructs  nothing. 

9 


10       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

Is  not  the  time  already  come  when  the  schools 
shall  take  the  hint  of  the  great  industrial  awaken- 
ing which  this  exposition  represents,  and  put  the 
child  face  to  face  with  nature,  —  his  material  in 
one  hand  and  his  tool  in  the  other?  To  observe, 
to  think,  and  to  express ;  to  assimilate  for  his  own 
growth  the  knowledge  which  nature  offers,  and 
to  communicate  for  the  growth  of  other  minds  that 
which  he  has  made  his  own  ;  in  other  words,  to 
relate  the  child  to  nature,  to  man,  and  to  God : 
this  is  the  province  of  education. 

For  the  environment  of  the  child  is  his  natural 
and  best  means  for  development.  His  curiosity 
about  things  which  he  sees,  about  processes  which 
he  perceives,  about  purposes  which  he  apprehends, 
constantly  stimulates  his  mental  and  spiritual 
growth,  and  calls  out  his  active  powers  of  expres- 
sion. This  exercise  means  growth  of  power ;  in 
a  word,  evolution.  The  schools  can  only  furnish 
methods  of  evolution  by  supplementing  the  train- 
ing of  nature. 

How  far  have  we  carried  into  our  Boston  schools 
these  manual-training  methods  ?  The  first  effort 
in  this  direction  was  the  establishment  of  classes 
in  wood-work,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Industrial 
School  Association,  in  1876,  and  the  adoption  by 
the  School  Board  of  this  department  in  the  Dwight 
School,  under  Master  James  A.  Page,  whose  report 
of  it  during  the  years  1881  and  1882  is  among  the 


MANUAL    TRAINING  II 

documents  of  the  School  Board,  and  shows  the 
work  to  have  been  highly  satisfactory  in  all 
respects,  physical,  intellectual,  and  moral.  Mr. 
Page  advises  that  the  shop  be  placed  in  every 
grammar  school ;  the  instruction  in  the  hands  of  a 
specialist,  and  the  general  direction  in  the  hands 
of  the  master.  One  sentence  in  Mr.  Page's  report 
gives  the  true  philosophy  :  "  There  can  be  no  thor- 
oughly clear  and  enlightened  brain  without  the 
cultivated  hand." 

This  movement  in  the  Dwight  School  was  suc- 
ceeded by  a  carpentry  course  in  the  Latin  School 
building,  open  to  boys,  who  should  elect  it,  from  all 
the  grammar  schools  in  the  -city  ;  and  this  course 
still  continues  with  a  special  teacher. 

In  1883  the  boys  of  the  Eliot  School  were 
admitted  to  manual-training  classes  at  the  Indus- 
trial Home  by  invitation  of  its  managers,  and  con- 
sequent action  of  the  School  Board.  In  1885  Mrs. 
Pauline  Agassiz  Shaw  offered  free  manual  instruc- 
tion to  girls  and  boys  at  the  North  Bennet  Street 
Industrial  School.  Classes  in  cookery,  sewing, 
clay-modelling,  shoemaking,  printing,  and  carpen- 
try, have  been  attended,  in  response  to  that  offer, 
by  pupils  selected  from  several  grammar  schools, 
as  ordered  by  the  School  Committee,  from  that 
day  to  this  ;  and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars 
have  been  expended  in  the  cause  of  manual  train- 
ing for  the  school-children  of  Boston  by  Mrs. 


12        THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

Shaw  during  the  past  fifteen  years,  including  her 
free  kindergartens,  which  she  gave  to  the  School 
Board  of  Boston  a  few  years  ago.  Where  is  the 
parallel  for  such  splendid  laboratory  work  in  edu- 
cational methods,  conceived,  carried  out,  and 
bestowed  freely,  by  one  individual  for  the  benefit 
of  the  public  schools  ? 

Cooking-schools  and  instruction  in  sewing  were 
also  initiated  and  fostered  by  private  generosity, 
under  the  superintendence  of  Mr.  Robert  Swan, 
master  of  the  Winthrop  School,  and  others.  Mrs. 
Mary  Hemenway  founded,  supported,  and,  in  1886, 
gave  to  the  city  of  Boston,  cookery  training- 
schools  and  well-equipped  school-kitchens,  the 
results  of  her  lavish  experimental  work.  At  pres- 
ent sewing  is  taught  to  all  the  girls,  and  cooking 
to  all  whose  parents  request  it,  in  every  grammar 
school  in  Boston. 

Superintendent  Seaver  presented  to  the  School 
Committee  of  1889  an  exhaustive  report  on  man- 
ual-training schools,  with  a  detailed  plan  for  a 
Mechanic  Arts  High  School :  this  school  awaits 
an  appropriation  of  money  for  its  establishment, 
as  ordered  by  the  School  Committee. 

When  the  kindergartens  became  incorporated 
with  our  public-school  system,  manual  training 
may  be  said  to  have  been  established  as  a  method 
of  instruction,  since  it  is  an  essential  and  charac- 
teristic element  in  Froebel's  philosophy.  It  was 


MANUAL    TRAINING  13 

inevitable  that  its  introduction  into  the  primary 
schools  should  not  be  long  delayed.  After  some 
individual  initiation  of  its  main  features  in  certain 
primary  classes  by  one  of  the  supervisors,  it  was 
ordered  by  the  School  Committee  for  the  primary 
schools  of  two  districts  ;  and  Mr.  M.  T.  Pritchard, 
master  of  the  Comins  School,  entered  into  the 
formulation  and  elaboration  of  the  work  in  his 
primary  classes  with  great  enthusiasm,  showing 
such  satisfactory  results  at  the  end  of  the  first 
year  of  its  operation,  that  a  manual-training  course 
was  made  a  permanent  feature  of  all  primary- 
school  instruction  at  the  beginning  of  the  present 
year ;  and  we  have  reason  to  expect  a  similar 
course,  adapted  to  advanced  grades,  projected  into 
the  grammar  schools  before  another  year,  thus 
carrying  up  kindergarten  methods  on  certain  lines 
of  manual  training,  not  heretofore  connected  with 
grammar-school  instruction,  as  far  as  the  high 
schools. 

Mr.  James  S.  Murphy,  chairman  of  the  Manual- 
Training  Committee  for  several  years,  did  very 
able  service  to  the  cause.  Free  normal  instruc- 
tion in  slojd,  as  well  as  other  courses  of  construc- 
tive work,  was  last  year,  and  still  is,  provided  by 
Mrs.  Shaw  for  the  primary  and  grammar  school- 
teachers of  Boston.  To  this  brief  review  of  the 
history  of  manual  training  in  our  public  schools,  I 
would  add  the  acknowledgment  of  a  great  impulse 


14        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

in  the  direction  of  physical  training,  through  a 
conference  held  a  year  ago  in  Boston,  by  Mrs. 
Mary  Hemenway,  for  a  discussion  of  methods 
and  of  the  educational  value  of  physical  training. 
Some  of  the  most  valuable  contributions  to  ped- 
agogical science  ever  presented  in  this  country 
were  embodied  in  the  papers  called  out  by  that 
conference;  and  this  was  supplemented  by  free 
normal  instruction,  at  Mrs.  Hemenway's  expense, 
for  the  teachers  of  Boston,  in  the  Ling  gymnastics, 
which  were  subsequently  adopted  for  all  the 
schools.  The  final  outcome  of  this  movement,  so 
far  as  the  public  schools  are  concerned,  is  the 
recent  appointment  of  Dr.  Hartwell  as  director  of 
physical  training  in  the  Boston  public  schools. 

Thus,  you  see,  Mr.  President,  the  lesson  your 
honored  Association  has  set  before  us  as  we  have 
so  far  learned,  and  are  ready  for  new  inspiration. 
Our  faces  are  set  toward  the  light.  To-day  we 
are  again  presented  with  this  complex  object-les- 
son of  human  skill  and  art.  In  this  proud  array, 
this  great  opportunity  of  study,  we  see  not  "  the 
gross,  the  torpid  bulk,"  but  the  united  product 
of  material  and  intelligence;  the  transmutation  of 
earthly  matter  by  spiritual  force ;  the  expression  of 
human  thought  for  purposes  of  human  develop- 
ment ;  structure  crystallized  by  human  motive  and 
vitalized  by  religious  fire.  How  stimulating  is 
such  a  study  of  form  and  adaptation  !  We  stand 


MANUAL    TRAINING  15 

before  a  great  mechanical  invention  with  awe  :  it 
holds  within  itself  the  unfolding  of  thought,  the 
blossoming  of  an  ideal,  the  actuality  of  a  dream. 
Through  years  of  patient  faith,  that  inspiration 
has  waited  in  the  brooding  brain  for  its  comple- 
tion in  structure  ;  we  see  in  it  a  demonstration  of 
the  divine  possibilities  of  human  thought  and 
skill.  For  free  human  thought  pursues  the  track 
of  divine  thought,  and  searches  out  its  secrets ; 
the  mechanism  of  the  heavens  and  earth,  of  plant 
and  animal  organisms,  of  that  consummate  ma- 
chine, the  human  body,  all  are  repeated  in  these 
complicated  contrivances  which  carry  on  our  in- 
dustries and  unite  man  with  his  environment. 
Man  has  joined  himself  to  his  natural  sources  of 
supply.  The  study  of  works  of  art  and  human 
invention  is  no  less  necessary  to  the  complete  de- 
velopment of  constructive  power  than  is  the  study 
of  nature.  We  must  put  ourselves  in  communica- 
tion with  the  ideals  of  other  minds  ;  let  us  welcome 
the  opportunity  brought  to  our  national  life  by  the 
pouring  in  of  all  types  of  thought,  all  modes  of  ex- 
pression, and  all  the  diversities  of  social  and  reli- 
gious feeling.  We  must  find  and  emphasize  the 
lines  of  contact  and  not  of  division,  if  we  would 
fuse  and  nationalize  such  an  accumulative  and 
heterogeneous  material  of  population  as  is  pouring 
into  our  schools,  and  evolve  a  cosmopolitan  peo- 
ple. Away  with  disintegrating  distinctions ! 


1 6       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

For  truth  in  all  its  perfect  round 
Unites  each  clear,  sweet  arc  of  sound; 
And  o'er  its  crystal  sphere  shall  climb 
Each  God-ward  faith  and  hope  sublime,— 

Each  creed  a  tongue 

Of  praise,  is  rung 

To  universal  harmonies. 

Each  race,  each  individual,  must  be  able  to  con- 
tribute his  share  to  the  supply  of  common  needs, 
and  add  to  the  aggregate  his  personal  force,  his 
productive  energy,  the  help  of  his  arm,  his  brain, 
his  way  of  looking  at  things,  and  the  power  of  his 
ideals. 

But  nature  is  the  supreme  object-lesson  of  in- 
dustrial education,  because  in  every  organic  form 
of  life  the  observer  is  confronted  with  a  divine  idea 
corresponding  to  his  power  of  apprehension. 
Here  is  the  type  of  form,  the  suggestion  of  mech- 
anism and  adaptation,  the  model  of  contrivance  and 
of  completed  purpose.  The  plan  of  the  leaf-factory, 
the  coil  of  the  tendril,  the  leverage  of  the  sunbeam, 
the  mathematics  of  the  crystal,  the  enginery  of  the 
brain,  the  telegraphy  of  the  cortex-cell,  challenge 
our  comprehension.  The  child  learns  from  nature 
the  alphabet  of  form,  and  tries  to  spell  with  the 
line,  the  surface,  and  the  solid,  his  first  syllables  in 
the  vocabulary  of  construction.  Mechanism  and 
art  offer  a  universal  language,  and  make  a  free 
plane  of  contact  with  humanity.  Structure  is  the 
completed  expression  of  thought.  Structure 


MANUAL    TRAINING  I/ 

adapted  to  function  means  a  personal,  originative 
impulse,  a  logical  creation,  a  sequence  of  individ- 
ual thought,  desire,  and  will,  with  a  possibility  of 
its  communication.  Let  the  child  then  receive 
the  stimulus  of  well-directed  observation  of  natural 
forms  and  processes  :  his  curiosity  is  aroused  ;  he 
investigates,  experiments,  constructs,  invents ; 
ideals  of  design  and  adaptation  stir  his  brain  and 
agitate  his  nerve-centres ;  his  hands  grow  restless 
with  the  impulse  for  originative  work ;  deny  his 
constructive  activities  free  play,  and  this  restless- 
ness finds  vent  in  the  exercise  of  his  destructive 
instincts  :  this  is  the  significance  of  much  of  the 
moral  warp  exhibited  in  school-life,  which  is  much 
better  met  by  occupation  than  by  punishment. 

Occupation,  although  in  a  sense  the  passive  side 
of  manual  training,  is  yet  the  salvation  of  disci- 
plinary methods.  Give  the  child  a  tool,  you  at 
once  differentiate  him  from  the  animal ;  he  begins 
to  feel  his  human  capacity  and  his  human  relations  ; 
he  wants  to  work  out  his  ideas  and  give  tangible 
shape  to  his  thought,  to  communicate  what  he 
knows,  and  become  a  unit  in  the  unity  of  human 
brotherhood  :  for  him,  the  evolution  of  soul  has 
reached  an  appreciable  stage.  He  is  connected 
with  his  era  and  ready  for  his  life-work,  for  which 
the  school  must  prepare  every  child. 

This  is  an  industrial  age  ;  the  old  school-methods 
are  out  of  joint  with  the  times  ;  all  our  industrial 


1 8        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

and  social  difficulties  arise  from  the  want  of  adjust- 
ment of  each  generation  of  men  to  the  genius  of 
their  day.  Our  educational  problem  is  a  problem 
of  race,  of  government,  of  adaptation  ;  it  touches 
kingdoms ;  it  reaches  into  practical  science ;  we 
are  discovering  our  material ;  we  are  finding  our 
way  into  our  sub-soil  supplies,  and  getting  our  fin- 
gers into  the  core  of  things;  we  must  be  ready  for 
all  our  connections,  and  know  the  whole  ground  by 
experience.  Fraternal  industry  is  the  watchword 
of  our  times.  A  few  principles  and  simple  tools 
give  the  key  to  all  the  trades  and  arts  ;  the  univer- 
sal language  of  structure  is  a  medium  of  communica- 
tion between  all  peoples,  and  makes  the  world  one. 

The  training  of  the  body,  mind,  and  soul,  involves 
a  connected  application  of  stimuli,  because  all  parts 
of  the  human  organism  are  so  closely  related  and 
interactive.  Sense  training  and  muscular  training 
must  reach  nerve  training,  and  nerve  training 
means  brain  training ;  all  must  work  together  to 
evolve  human  power.  The  physical  brain  itself 
betrays  any  lack  of  hand-development,  and  tells  to 
the  anatomist  the  story  of  the  disused  faculty. 
The  brain-centres  not  built  up  by  motor  action  fail 
in  their  radical  completeness,  and  are  dwarfed  in  all 
their  activities. 

But  it  is  an  adjunct  to  moral  training  that  man- 
ual training  has  its  inclusive  value.  "  All  is  for 
thee,  O  Soul !  " 


MANUAL    TRAINING  19 

Manual  and  physical  training  offer  to  us  a  new 
and  more  thorough  solution  of  the  moral  problems 
of  school  education.  Orderly  hand-work  is  regen- 
erative, when  all  directly  ethical  means  at  our  dis- 
posal are  of  no  avail.  This  educative  power,  both 
intellectual  and  moral,  is  what  concerns  us  most  in 
the  consideration  of  manual  training  in  our  element- 
ary schools.  The  material  advantages  of  indus- 
trial education  are  so  plain,  that  he  who  runs  may 
read  :  it  makes  the  world  rich,  prosperous,  and 
progressive.  In  all  its  issues,  social,  political,  and 
industrial,  it  is  good  :  it  makes  happy  homes,  it 
builds  up  a  united  people  ;  it  is  like  a  tree  planted 
by  rivers  of  waters  whose  leaves  are  for  the  healing 
of  the  nations.  Yet,  in  arguing  for  its  adoption,  I 
prefer  to  keep  the  broad  highway  of  educational 
motive,  holding  close  to  my  heart  this  alabaster 
box  of  very  precious  ointment  ;  and  while  I  hear 
the  clamor  of  the  materialist,  of  the  utilitarian,  or 
even  of  the  philanthropist,  saying,  "  Why  was  not 
this  ointment  sold  for  three  hundred  pence  and 
given  to  the  poor?"  I  answer:  Because  it  is 
dedicated  to  a  loftier  purpose,  a  more  inclusive 
beneficence  ;  to  the  generation,  expression,  and 
interchange  of  thought ;  to  the  evolution  of  soul  ; 
to  the  union  of  the  human  with  the  divine. 


REMARKS  AT  THE  MANUAL-TRAINING 
CONFERENCE 


WHEN  I  enter  a  kindergarten,  I  feel  that  I  am  in 
the  first  stage  of  the  general  public-school  educa- 
tion. I  think  we  are  apt  to  forget  that  the  kin- 
dergarten is  not  an  institution  entirely  separate 
from  all  other  schools,  but  only  the  first  start  in 
the  school  education  of  the  child.  I  like  to  feel, 
also,  that  there  we  get  the  initiative  of  the  true 
spirit  of  education.  I  feel  so  strongly  that  the 
spirit  is  the  essential  thing,  that  I  like  to  mention 
that  as  the  initial  ideal  to  which  we  should  direct 
our  attention. 

I  visited  the  other  day  a  kindergarten  in  the 
midst  of  one  of  our  primary  schools,  as  it  should 
be,  and,  while  attending  the  exercises,  the  chil- 
dren and  teachers  of  two  lower  classes  of  the  pri- 
mary school  were  invited  in  to  take  part  in  the 
kindergarten  games  and  songs  ;  and  there  we  had 
a  most  beautiful  mingling  of  the  kindergarten 
with  the  public  school,  in  spirit  and  expression. 
I  felt  that  it  was  like  a  baptism  of  the  spirit  of 


KINDERGARTEN  AND  MANUAL    TRAINING      21 

the  kindergarten  upon  the  public-school  work. 
There  was  an  ineffable  sweetness,  and  almost  holi- 
ness, about  the  atmosphere  of  the  place.  The 
children's  faces  were  lighted  up  with  real  in- 
spiration and  interest,  and  one  could  almost  see 
a  tongue  of  flame  on  the  forehead  of  the  teachers. 
I  cannot  express  the  spirit  that  pervaded  the 
whole  scene.  The  copy  of  the  Sistine  Madonna 
which  hung  upon  the  wall  seemed  its  only 
adequate  expression.  I  saw  then  how  easily 
and  naturally  the  spirit  of  the  kindergarten 
could  be  adopted  into  the  whole  method  of 
education. 

Prof.  Adler  spoke  of  the  intellectual  power  of 
manual  training,  and  its  influence  on  the  various 
departments  of  school-work,  and  finally  of  its 
moral  power.  That  has  been  emphasized  in  my 
own  observation.  The  effect  of  industrial  work 
in  the  schools  has  been  regenerative.  It  acts  as 
a  tonic  upon  the  moral  activities  as  well  as  upon 
the  intellectual.  I  should  like  to  give  one  or  two 
instances  of  its  effect  as  a  moral  tonic. 

I  have  a  favorite  little  story  which  makes  this 
quite  plain  to  my  own  mind.  It  is  the  story 
of  Tomowski,  a  little  boy  who  had  been  sent  to 
the  reformatory,  or  truant  school,  out  of  a  pri- 
mary school.  He  had  been  altogether  a  bad 
boy,  as  the  teachers  sometimes  say  of  a  boy 
who  has  followed  a  very  distorted  course  of  devel- 


22        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

opment.  He  had  come  back  from  the  truant 
school,  and  was  again  at  the  door  of  the  primary 
school.  He  was  about  fourteen.  He  was  well 
known  as  one  of  the  most  troublesome  of  chil- 
dren, vicious,  mischievous,  out  of  school  as  well 
as  in,  and  so  far  behind  in  his  intellectual  develop- 
ment that  he  was  suspected  of  being  partially 
imbecile,  so  far  as  school-work  was  concerned. 
The  teacher,  a  wise  woman,  full  of  sweetness  and 
light,  said  to  herself,  "This  boy,  though  *  not 
advanced  enough  for  my  class,  would  be  so  great 
a  charge  for  any  other  teacher,  that  I  will  put 
him  into  my  own  class."  As  she  led  him  into 
her  room,  thoughts  flashed  quickly  into  her  mind 
in  regard  to  her  treatment  of  him.  She  made  no 
reference  to  his  history.  She  put  a  good  boy  on 
each  side  of  him,  and  then  she  called  him  up  and 
asked  if  he  could  go  out  doors  and  find  three  very 
nice  plantain  leaves  for  her  to  use.  He  was 
pleased  with  the  confidence  she  placed  in  him, 
and  said  he  thought  he  could.  He  returned  as 
soon  as  possible  with  three  fresh,  whole  plantain 
leaves  and  handed  them  to  her.  She  gave  them 
to  him  and  the  two  boys  beside  him,  with  paper 
and  pencil,  telling  them  to  make  a  picture  of  the 
leaf,  either  by  drawing  or  tracing.  The  children 
went  to  work  with  delight.  The  leaves  were 
drawn,  and  the  teacher  praised  Tomowski.  Then 
she  gave  each  a  little  vial  of  colored  wash  and  a 


KINDERGARTEN  AND  MANUAL    TRAINING      2$ 

brush,  and  asked  them  to  color  the  leaves  and 
make  them  look  as  much  as  possible  like  the 
plantain  leaf.  Next,  she  gave  them  each  a  pair 
of  scissors, — one  of  those  which  a  certain  super- 
visor had  carried  to  the  primary-school  teachers, 
and  which  had  been  received  by  many  with  a 
smile  of  incredulity,  —  and  said,  "Now  cut  out 
the  leaf  that  you  have  drawn."  This  was  soon 
accomplished.  She  then  placed  all  the  leaves  on 
a  screen,  putting  the  names  of  those  who  had 
made  them  against  the  copies,  which  were  side  by 
side  with  the  real  ones,  and  gave  a  lesson  to  the 
class  upon  the  leaves, — a  very  attractive  lesson 
to  the  children  and  one  in  the  usual  course  of 
lessons  given  there,  —  after  which  she  went  on 
with  the  regular  exercises  of  the  room,  in  which 
Tomowski  showed  a  very  positive  and  steady 
interest,  and  which  he  accomplished  in  a  sat- 
isfactory way.  During  the  whole  session  she 
had  no  occasion  to  be  reminded  that  he  was  a 
bad  boy. 

The  next  morning  she  placed  him  as  before, 
and  brought  out  some  clay  and  showed  him  how  to 
make  a  clay  leaf.  He  took  great  pains,  and  mani- 
fested decided  aptness  for  it.  The  clay  leaf  also 
was  put  on  exhibition.  This  little  placque  may 
be  seen  here  to-day  in  the  manual-training  exhibit 
of  the  Boston  primary  schools  ;  and  to  my  eye  its 
natural  and  graceful  outlines  are  the  sign-manual 


24       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

of  the  free  spirit  of  truth,  waiting  for  expression  in 
right  activities,  which  may  be  developed  even  in 
the  most  discouraging  of  our  children.  In  that 
way  the  teacher  proceeded  ;  giving  some  form  of 
manual  training,  something  which  engaged  the 
child's  active  participation  at  once,  which  gave 
him  self-respect,  and  an  opportunity  to  measure 
himself  as  a  good  boy  by  other  good  children,  and 
made  him  feel  that  he,  too,  could  do  something 
worthy  of  commendation,  and  be  of  some  use. 
Every  Friday  this  teacher  had  the  habit  of  invit- 
ing parents  and  friends  to  see  the  boys,  and  the 
work  that  had  been  accomplished  during  the  week ; 
and  Tomowski's  work  was  always  among  the  best. 
His  name  was  always  placed  with  his  work.  It 
stood  for  his  individual  reputation,  and  gave  him 
a  new  consciousness  of  power  and  courage  to  do 
his  best.  At  the  end  of  the  year  she  had  not 
had  occasion  once  to  correct  this  boy.  He  had 
never  been  late  or  absent.  He  was  no  longer  a 
truant,  but  a  clean,  respectable  boy.  He  had 
taken  hold  of  his  intellectual  work  with  such  vigor 
and  success,  that  he  had  outstripped  the  whole 
class  and  was  prepared  to  skip  a  grade.  He  felt 
that  his  past  history  had  been  effaced,  and  that 
he  could  begin  life  anew. 

In  order  to  show  further  the  subtle  effect  of 
manual  training  upon  moral  growth,  I  will  relate 
the  story  of  Peter:  — 


KINDERGARTEN  AND  MANUAL    TRAINING     2$ 

Such  a  pleasant  schoolroom  and  wise  and  pro- 
gressive teacher  !  She  is  a  mother,  and  knows  and 
loves  the  children  ;  she  is  versatile  in  resource,  and 
yet  quiet,  with  great  power  of  firm,  undemonstra- 
tive control.  She  has  many  of  the  freshest  and 
best  devices  for  teaching  by  the  best  methods. 
Everything  she  does  has  a  meaning  and  is  adapted 
to  the  wants  and  development  of  her  class.  I  take 
her  some  knives  and  scissors,  saying,  "  I  don't 

know  that  you  want  these,  Mrs. ,  you  have  so 

many  things,  and  do  such  beautiful  work,  and  keep 
such  good  order ;  "  but  she  replies  eagerly,  "  Oh, 
that  is  just  exactly  what  I  want !  I  have  been  try- 
ing to  think  of  something  for  Peter  :  you  see  him 
there  by  the  door,  he  is  asleep.  He  often  comes 
drowsy  and  stupid  and  half-intoxicated  ;  he  is  filthy 
and  profane,  and  smokes  and  chews  tobacco,  and 
may  be  under-witted ;  he  does  almost  nothing. 
Perhaps  he  would  be  waked  up  by  a  knife  to  use." 
So  I  give  my  tools,  and  know  they  will  not  be  neg- 
lected or  misused  here,  and  I  visit  the  school 
again  in  a  week.  "  H6w  is  Peter?"  —"Why,  I 
cannot  tell  you  how  he  has  improved.  I  let  him 
take  a  knife  and  wood,  and  we  have  begun  some 
slojd-work  right  in  the  room.  We  let  boys  who 
have  done  their  work  whittle,  and  a  number  of 
things  have  been  made.  The  boys  are  delighted 
with  it,  and  are  so  good  and  neat  about  it  !  We 
have  saved  these  things  they  have  made,  to  show 


26        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

you.  And  who  do  you  think  has  done  the  best 
piece  of  work  ?  Peter,  bring  your  stick  to  Mrs. 
Hopkins,  who  gave  us  the  knives."  — "  Why,  is 
this  Peter's  ?  How  even  and  smooth  it  is,  and  it 
seems  to  me  Peter  has  made  himself  look  nicer 
too  !  "  —  "  Yes  ;  Peter  made  such  a  good  stick  that 
I  set  it  up  for  a  model,  and  Peter  is  so  glad  to  do 
something  that  is  really  good,  that  he  has  improved 
ever  since,  and  is  getting  to  be  a  very  good  boy. 
I  think  he  is  not  going  to  drink  any  more,  because 
it  makes  him  so  dull." 

The  next  week  I  go  again.  The  change  in  Peter 
is  still  more  striking :  he  is  getting  bright,  and 
takes  an  interest  in  his  studies.  He  has  made  an 
extremely  good  spade,  which  is  exhibited  with  the 
slojd-work  of  the  boys,  and  is  really  much  the  best 
piece  of  work  seen.  Peter  has  learned  that  he  can 
excel  in  this  thing.  He  has  begun  to  respect 
himself  ;  he  is  leaving  off  his  bad  habits,  and  attend- 
ing not  only  to  his  conduct,  but  to  his  person ; 
he  looks  human  and  is  agreeable.  After  a  few 
weeks  I  visit  the  school  once  more.  The  slojd 
has  developed  into  a  shop  with  benches  and  tools, 
and  Peter  gets  his  lessons  well,  that  he  may  be 
allowed  to  go  into  the  shop  at  times.  He  helps 
the  other  boys  there ;  he  stays  after  school,  and 
comes  before  school,  to  get  things  in  order  and 
work  at  the  models ;  his  work  is  still  by  far  the 
best  in  the  shop.  He  is  a  kind  of  master  work- 


KINDERGARTEN  AND  MANUAL    TRAINING      2/ 

man  ;  his  hair  is  brushed,  he  is  clean,  he  is  neatly 
dressed,  with  the  help  of  some  who  care  for  his 
success,  and  he  is  getting  to  be  a  good  scholar. 
The  teacher  says  he  has  dropped  all  his  bad 
habits,  is  trustworthy  and  steady.  When  I  go  out 
of  the  school  with  my  traps  into  the  rain,  he  asks 
to  go  and  carry  my  bag  and  my  umbrella,  and 
help  me  into  the  car.  He  is  a  gentleman.  He  is 
regenerated  by  faith  in  his  power  to  achieve. 

Wherever  manual  training  is  introduced,  I  hope 
it  will  be  recognized  that  its  educational  value  is  as 
great  for  girls  as  for  boys.  We  are  apt  to  forget 
how  many  girls  are  aching  to  put  their  thought 
and  feeling  into  some  form  of  expression.  But 
when  we  remember  that  a  young  lady,  a  recent 
graduate  from  the  Institute  of  Technology,  has 
just  been  called  to  Chicago  to  superintend  the 
erection  of  the  building  she  designed  for  the 
department  of  the  women's  exhibit  in  the  Colum- 
bia Exposition  of  1892,  when  we  think  how  much 
it  is  to  her,  and  how  much  pride  we  all  take  in  it, 
that  she  is  able  to  express  her  own  individuality 
and  her  own  ideals  in  such  forms,  we  must  re- 
member to  leave  the  field  free  to  all,  girls  as  well 
as  boys.  We  have  too  long  relegated  our  girls  to 
the  cooking-school  and  the  sewing-room  as  their 
only  sphere  of  manual  activity  ;  but  I  hope  we 
shall  wake  up  to  the  truth,  that  girls  need  the 


28        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

same  liberty  of  selection  as  boys,  so  far  as  the 
expression  of  their  feeling  and  thought  is  con- 
cerned. They  have  great  thoughts  that  long  to 
take  shape,  and  we  must  leave  the  field  free  for 
all. 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  A  MEANS   OF 
MENTAL  AND  MORAL  TRAINING 


ADDRESS  BEFORE    THE  LADIES'  PHYSIOLOGICAL 
INSTITUTE 


THERE  is  a  fitness  in  discussing  mental  and 
moral  education  from  the  physiological  point  of 
view.  We  have  long  since  learned  that  physiologi- 
cal conditions  to  a  great  extent  determine  the 
power  and  degree  of  mental  activity  ;  we  know 
that  the  sound  mind  needs  a  sound  body  for  its 
tool,  no  less  than  for  its  home.  The  air  taken  into 
the  lungs  must  be  pure,  the  circulation  vigorous, 
the  digestion  healthy,  in  order  to  effectual  mental 
activity.  The  brain  must  be  nourished  with  good 
blood.  We  cannot  make  a  hungry  child  attentive 
to  study,  nor  a  tired  child  think  well ;  we  cannot 
make  the  child  that  is  ragged  and  dirty  do  good 
mental  work,  or  respond  to  moral  stimulus.  We 
must  have  right  physiological  conditions  in  our 
schoolrooms  :  let  the  sunshine  stream  in,  let  plants 
grow  and  spread  their  verdure  to  purify  the  air, 
let  the  fresh  air  be  poured  in,  and  the  foul  air 

29 


30       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

be  driven  out,  that  nature  may  be  free  to  act  in 
her  bodily  and  mental  connections  as  well  as  in 
moral  growth  and  expression.  The  clothing  must 
be  easy  and  the  posture  natural,  so  that  physical 
freedom  shall  insure  the  best  activities  of  all  kinds. 
When  I  go  into  a  schoolroom  and  see  the  chil- 
dren listless  or  stupid,  I  at  once  look  for  the  physi- 
cal cause.  What  are  the  means  of  ventilation  ? 
How  does  the  thermometer  stand  ?  Are  the  seats 
comfortable  and  adjusted  to  the  need  of  the  pupils  ? 
Is  the  air  fresh  ?  Have  they  had  a  chance  to  work 
off  their  restlessness  by  any  physical  exercise  ? 
Do  they  look  sufficiently  fed  and  properly  clothed  ? 
If  they  are  sleepy,  there  is  some  reason  for  it :  what 
is  it  ?  Not  rarely  I  find  that  they  have  had  far  too 
little  sleep.  The  young  teachers,  perhaps,  do  not 
think  of  all  these  matters ;  and  so  they  blame  the 
children  who  are  not  doing  the  work  well,  and  too 
often  they  think,  verily,  that  they  are  doing  God 
service  in  inflicting  corporal  punishment  upon  the 
poor  boys,  whose  misfortune  it  is  to  suffer  bodily, 
and  endure  physical  hardship  as  a  life  tenure  night 
and  day.  I  found  a  weary  teacher  struggling  with 
a  class  of  very  sleepy  boys  one  day  in  June  :  she 
was  rolling  up  quite  a  list  to  stay  after  school  for 
further  study,  the  most  illogical  thing  she  could 
have  invented  for  the  correction  of  their  fault.  I 
found  on  inquiry  that  twelve  boys  in  the  room, 
none  of  them  over  ten  years  old,  had  been  out  all 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  31 

night  in  the  street,  and  probably  had  eaten  nothing 
but  bananas  and  possibly  drunk  nothing  but  beer. 
What  could  be  done  for  the  mental  and  moral 
training  of  children  in  such  a  condition  ?  Their 
first  necessity  was  sleep  or  food.  • 

It  is  not  easy  to  solve  the  problem  of  right  physi- 
ological conditions  in  our  city  schools  :  I  almost 
despair  of  its  solution  in  the  districts  of  foreign 
population.  The  kindergarten  methods  give  us 
some  courage.  To  see  three  or  four  devoted  women 
at  work  like  missionaries  with  the  children  ;  visiting 
their  homes,  securing  proper  clothing  for  them, 
exhorting  and  encouraging  the  mothers  to  keep 
them  clean  and  helping  them  do  it  every  day, 
feeding  the  children  once  during  the  session  and 
serving  at  each  session,  by  personal  charity,  a  tum- 
bler of  fresR,  good  milk  to  each  poor  little  one,  as 
is  done  in  one,  at  least,  of  our  kindergartens  ;  this 
is,  indeed,  a  tonic  to  the  sinking  soul  of  the  prophet. 
Perhaps  we  shall  get  down  to  the  children  in  time, 
and  carry  the  gospel  of  true  nurture  into  the 
schoolroom. 

A  child  can  do  nothing  morally  worthy  without 
a  basis  of  self-respect.  A  good  master,  who  has 
learned  how  to  build  up  character,  has  told  me  many 
of  his  instructive  experiences  in  his  effort  to 
reach  the  moral  nature.  His  name  is  well  known  as 
the  synonyme  of  wise  benevolence,  of  just  charity, 
of  true  and  complete  educative  influence ;  it  is 


32        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

dear  to  thousands  of  our  graduates  for  two  gener- 
ations ;  it  stands  for  the  founding  of  the  sewing 
and  cooking  instruction  which  has  so  blessed  the 
community  and  built  up  homes  in  comfort  and 
health  and  moral  strength.  I  speak  of  our  most 
venerable  master,  Mr.  Robert  Swan,  of  the  VVin- 
throp  Grammar  School  for  girls,  a  man  whose  pres- 
ence is  still  a  benediction  amongst  us.  He  told 
me  the  following  story,  which  I  give  in  substance, 
of  his  experience  in  a  boys'  school,  and  it  contains 
a  lesson  worth  learning.  A  boy  who  was  an  habit- 
ual truant  and  of  vicious  tendencies,  who  made  no 
progress  in  school,  and  was  rough,  coarse,  and  low 
in  his  tastes,  was  brought  back  by  the  truant-officer 
after  a  truancy  of  three  weeks.  He  expected  a 
pretty  thorough  chastisement ;  but  Mr.  Swan,  who 
had  already  lost  faith  in  that  method  of  dealing 
with  the  truant,  took  the  boy  down  to  the  base- 
ment alone,  and  said,  "  Now,  I  don't  wonder  you 
don't  feel  like  coming  to  school  with  that  ragged 
and  dirty  jacket  ;  take,  it  off,  and  wash  your  hands 
and  face  as  well  as  you  can,  and  I  will  see  if  I  can 
find  you  another  jacket."  He  went  to  a  closet 
where  he  kept  some  good  second-hand  clothing, 
which  he  had  solicited  for  just  such  exigencies,  and 
took  out  a  very  nice  jacket,  which  had  been  given 
him  by  a  father  whose  son  had  worn  it  but  little 
when  he  died.  Mr.  Swan  told  the  truant  to  try  it 
on  :  it  fitted  him  perfectly.  "  Now,"  said  he,  "that 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  33 

jacket  belonged  to  a  boy  who  was  a  perfect  gentle- 
man in  his  behavior ;  he  was  a  good  boy  in  school 
and  out,  and  his  father  would  not  want  any  boy  to 
wear  that  who  did  not  mean  to  do  right.  I  will 
hang  your  jacket  up  here,  and  you  can  wear  that  as 
long  as  you  behave  like  a  gentleman ;  when  you 
forfeit  it,  you  can  have  yours  back  again.  Now 
go  to  your  seat  and  see  what  kind  of  a  record  you 
can  make."  The  boy  reformed,  and  never  did 
anything  worthy  of  correction  in  school ;  he  woke 
up  to  his  school-work  and  was  rapidly  promoted ; 
he  wore  the  jacket  until  he  had  outgrown  it,  and 
he  became  a  good  man  and  useful  citizen.  The 
foundation  of  self-respect  was  laid  by  the  master's 
treatment,  and  sympathy  was  established  which 
made  the  master's  influence  permanently  effectual. 
The  exercise  of  well-directed  games  is  good 
physiological  preparation  for  mental  and  moral 
growth.  Athletics,  not  overdone,  are  a  great  outlet 
and  safeguard  for  pent-up  energies  as  well  as  a 
training  in  resolution,  courage,  and  self-mastery. 
The  English  schools  avail  themselves  of  this  method 
of  training  the  whole  boy.  Dr.  Arnold  set  the 
forces  of  natural  play  at  work  to  build  up  the 
school  and  create  strong  boys  and  men,  with  power 
of  resistance  and  self-control.  It  is  the  same  prin- 
ciple which  Froebel  incorporated  in  the  kindergar- 
ten. Healthful,  joyous,  fraternal  activity  under 
proper  limitations  is  good  physiological  and  peda- 


34        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

gogical  doctrine.  I  think  we  do  not  make  enough 
account  of  it  in  our  elementary  schools. 

But  we  are  studying  the  physiological  problem 
as  an  integral  and  fundamental  part  of  our  common- 
school  education.  We  must  look  a  little  deeper 
than  we  have  yet  done  for  the  essential  philosophy 
of  physical  and  intellectual  connections  and  mutual 
relations.  We  find  our  deepest  thinkers  mining 
in  this  vein,  and  we  must,  before  long,  formulate  the 
science  of  these  reactions  of  mind  and  body,  and  of 
the  responses  which  the  child  makes  to  his  environ- 
ment and  conditions.  The  methods  of  mental  and 
moral  activity  are  so  subtle,  their  processes  so  com- 
plex, their  causes  and  results  so  intangible,  that  it 
is  difficult  to  perceive  them  nicely,  or  to  determine 
them  completely.  All  the  new  approaches  to  edu- 
cational science  are  along  the  line  of  physiological- 
psychology  ;  and  we  must  begin  with  the  first 
elements  of  investigation  in  order  to  formulate  the 
true  methods  of  training  the  body,  mind,  and  soul 
in  uninterrupted  concord. 

In  the  first  place  we  may  ask,  what  is  the 
human  body?  How  various  may  be  our  defini- 
tion !  It  is  the  combination  of  tissues  and 
organs  which  constitutes  the  human  organism ; 
the  connection  we  make  with  our  environment, 
the  medium  of  transmitted  thought  and  will, 
the  aggregation  of  differentiated  cells  which 
serves  the  purpose  of  human  existence,  a  com- 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  35 

munity  of  organs  and  processes  necessary  to  the 
preservation  and  demonstration  of  human  life, 
a  machine  in  which  the  potential  energy  of  life 
is  converted  into  the  kinetic  energy  of  living ;  it 
is  the  tool  of  the  mind  and  soul ;  it  is  the  point 
of  application  of  human  force  to  the  material  uni- 
verse. The  body  is  built  up  directly  or  indirectly 
from  the  earthly  matter  by  which  it  is  surrounded  ; 
it  is  made  of  dust,  continually  re-enforced  by  dust 
more  or  less  transformed,  and  at  last,  when  the 
indwelling  principle  of  life  is  withdrawn,  it  returns 
to  the  earth  as  it  was,  and  becomes  a  constituent 
part  of  its  mass,  to  be  drawn  into  its  uses  again  in 
other  forms  of  life. 

But  is  this  all  ?  Is  it  pure  matter,  even  highly 
organized  matter,  this  body  of  ours  ?  Is  not  a 
new  apprehension  of  its  meaning  and  essence 
coming  into  science  as  well  as  into  religion  ? 
Surely  it  is  not  the  succession  of  particles  con- 
stantly coming  and  going  in  this  organism  which 
can  be  called  the  body.  At  what  bidding  do  they 
come  and  go  ?  By  what  power  are  they  assimilated 
to  differences  of  structure  and  function  ?  according 
to  what  pattern  do  they  fall  into  line  for  the  ser- 
vice of  the  soul,  ever  presenting  its  image  more 
and  more  perfectly  as  dominated  by  habits  of  feel- 
ing, thought,  and  action  ?  to  what  entity  do  they 
render  homage  and  obedience  while  life  lasts  ? 
Ah,  there  is  something  more  subtle  than  matter, 


36        THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

which  must  be  called  the  body ;  it  is  the  image, 
the  pattern,  the  ideal,  which  commands,  controls, 
and  transfigures  its  material  particles  to  a  con- 
stant expression  of  itself,  and  which  will,  in  all 
environments  of  being,  forever  assimilate  to  its 
uses  the  material  of  those  environments ;  it  is  the 
spiritual  reality  dominating  the  outward  material, 
which  is  the  essential  body.  Physiology,  as  well 
as  psychology,  must  recognize  this  profound  truth, 
and  nowhere  forget  the  unity  of  the  threefold 
being  called  man,  and  the  close  interrelation  of 
body,  mind,  and  soul. 

There  was  a  time,  perhaps,  when  all  physiologi- 
cal training  and  medical  treatment  dealt  with  the 
corporeity  of  the  body  as  the  essential  subject  of 
experiment.  A  clumsy,  crude  method  it  seems, 
now  that  science  has  gone  a  step  or  two  in  advance. 
Calomel  and  blood-letting  belong  to  an  age  of 
medical  superficiality,  when  the  sea-captain,  with 
his  chest  of  drugs,  or  with  his  butcher's  tools,  met 
the  exigencies  of  a  long  voyage  for  his  crew, 
ignorantly  if  not  barbarously,  but  with  the  same 
confidence  as  the  quack  doctor,  if  not  with  almost 
the  skill  of  the  country  practitioner.  Now  a  dis- 
tempered organ  or  tissue  is  not  at  once  treated 
locally  with  the  blister  or  the  knife,  but  the  inves- 
tigation is  carried  to  the  blood,  or  to  the  secre- 
tions, or  to  the  nervous  system,  and  the  cure 
begins  nearer  the  source  of  the  trouble.  The 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  37 

physician  looks  upon  the  outward  condition  only  in 
its  symptomatic  significance,  and  seeks  the  inward 
cause  for  his  point  of  application.  Perhaps  the  age 
is  dawning  when  physiological  science  may  with 
psychological  discernment  attack  a  still  deeper 
cause,  a  more  intricate  relationship  of  this  wonder- 
ful organism  we  call  the  body,  and  learn  how  to 
reach  the  connections  of  body,  mind,  and  soul  by 
curative  agencies.  In  fact,  the  time  has  come 
when  the  physician  must  be  able  to  explore  every 
seat  of  man's  activities,  if  he  would  be  able  to  dis- 
cover and  correct  what  appears  to  be  a  fault  or 
disorder  in  any  one ;  the  study  of  a  muscle 
involves  the  study  of  nervous  centres  and  connec- 
tions, the  study  of  nervous  power  involves  the 
study  of  mind  and  feeling  and  all  their  articula- 
tions with  the  varied  organism  of  the  body. 

If,  then,  the  comprehension  of  bodily  activities 
demands  such  knowledge  of  mental  and  moral 
associations,  no  less  does  a  comprehension  of  men- 
tal and  moral  activities  involve  a  knowledge  of 
their  physiological  associations.  The  educator 
must  study  the  reactions  of  the  bodily  conditions,  if 
he  would  understand  mental  and  moral  conditions  ; 
he  must  apply  corrective  agencies  to  physiological 
disturbance  or  torpidity,  if  he  would  take  the 
first  steps  toward  correcting  that  of  the  mind  and 
soul.  The  teacher  must  look  at  the  body  as  symp- 
tomatic of  the  mind  ;  he  must  often  stop  in  his 


38        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

direct  efforts  to  train  the  mind,  in  order  to  set  the 
body  and  mind  in  tune,  in  order  to  reach  the  best 
physiological  conditions  for  the  unfettered  move- 
ment of  mind,  for  the  free  development  of  soul. 
We  are  just  beginning  to  learn  this  lesson,  and  are 
suddenly  bringing  our  educational  efforts  to  bear 
upon  the  whole  physical  organism.  We  have  dis- 
covered that  the  body  is  occupied  by  the  mind 
wherever  the  nervous  system  is  revealed  by  nerve 
tissue  and  by  muscular  action.  We  are  outgrowing 
the  notion  of  locating  the  intelligence  and  the 
moral  sense ;  we  are  studying  the  doctrine  of  the 
unity  of  the  threefold  nature  of  the  child  ;  we  see 
that  complete  nervous  action  and  automatic  mus- 
cular communication  express  intelligence  in  every 
part  of  the  body,  in  hand  or  foot  as  well  as  in 
spinal-cord  or  brain.  The  whole  body  is  per- 
meated by  mind  and  will,  and  the  training  of  any 
part  of  the  child  means  the  training  of  the  whole 
child  ;  the  development  of  any  organ  in  its  right 
relations  is  the  development  to  that  extent  of  the 
mind  and  soul.  The  training  and  harmonious 
mastery  of  the  body  evolves  soul-power,  because 
the  soul  presides  over  every  organ  and  inspires 
every  activity.  "  Know  ye  not  that  ye  are  the 
temple  of  God  and  that  the  spirit  of  God  dwelleth 
in  you?"  Religion  found  it  out  for  us  first,  and 
now  let  science  hasten  to  meet  the  great  truth. 
There  is  a  broad  philosophy  here  ;  do  we  yet  fully 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  39 

grasp  it  ?  It  is  for  you  as  physiologists,  as  phy- 
sicians ;  it  is  for  me  as  psychologist,  as  teacher  ; 
we  must  never  lose  sight  of  it  in  our  efforts  to 
reach  either  the  mind  or  the  body. 

Some  years  ago  I  was  staying  at  Dr.  Taylor's 
Swedish  movement-cure  in  New  York.  Day 
after  day  I  saw  a  little  boy  of  four  years,  supposed 
to  be  paralyzed,  but  evidently  of  very  low  mental 
power,  brought  in  by  his  father,  mother,  and  grand- 
mother, all  absorbed  in  the  hope  of  his  improve- 
ment, to  take  some  of  the  various  muscular  exer- 
cises or  manipulations.  The  child  manifested 
very  little  intelligence  :  he  was  so  dependent,  how- 
ever, on  expressions  of  human  sympathy,  that  he 
missed  painfully  the  absence  of  any  one  of  the 
three  who  accompanied  him,  and  even  turned 
for  a  responsive  smile  to  a  stranger,  and  seemed 
disturbed  if  it  were  not  given.  I  watched  the 
artificial  movements  by  which  he  was  treated,  with 
complete  incredulity  at  that  time.  I  said,  "The 
physician  is  powerless  to  create  intelligence." 
But  can  we  now  doubt  that  a  mind  so  inert  can 
be  aroused  only  through  physical  applications  and 
through  sympathy  which  —  thank  Heaven  !  —  holds 
us  together  to  the  last,  and  is  the  most  tenacious, 
as  well  as  the  most  blessed  link  in  the  chain 
which  binds  us  to  the  universal  Love.  But  the 
intelligence  so  limited  in  its  power  as  to  make  no 
impression  even  upon  the  lowest  voluntary  mus- 


4O        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

cles  can  be  gradually  approached  through  aroused 
bodily  sensations,  and,  by  regular  exercise,  a  habit 
of  physical  perception  be  created  which  proves 
reactionary  upon  the  mental  power ;  also  a  mere 
bodily  sympathy,  made  more  or  less  constant  and 
close,  will  at  last  beget  a  mental  responsiveness, 
which  seems  to  be  the  only  avenue  to  the  im- 
prisoned intelligence,  and  the  mind  is  found  to 
grow  and  express  itself  in  more  and  more  conscious 
activities  by  the  commerce  of  these  habitual  re- 
actions. Let  us  carry  the  analogy  still  farther, 
and  find  in  the  higher  departments  of  physical 
training  the  means  of  moral  training,  in  the  es- 
tablishment of  harmonious  bodily  processes  the 
beginnings  of  harmonious  moral  processes,  the 
spirit  of  the  Lord  coming  to  .dwell  in  the  renewed 
temple  of  the  body. 

We  may  begin  at  either  end  of  the  linkage, 
wherever  the  chain  is  strongest  and  the  attach- 
ment most  accessible.  In  the  days  of  the  New 
England  Primer,  the  teacher  attacked  the  moral 
nature  only  through  the  catechism,  the  decalogue, 
and  bodily  penalties  ;  in  these  days  we  must  attack 
it  where  we  find  it,  by  habits  of  conduct,  by  men- 
tal discipline,  by  physical  training,  by  as  high 
ideals  as  the  child  is  able  to  assimilate,  for  it  is 
these  only  which  will  be  worked  into  character. 
The  personal  atmosphere  about  the  child  ;  the  real 
nurture  of  the  child  through  sympathy ;  the  insen- 


PHYSICAL   TRAINING  41 

sible  growing  into  the  image  set  before  him  (in 
life,  in  literature,  in  the  secret  chambers  of  his 
imagery) ;  the  determining  power  of  habit ;  the 
organic  tendency  of  conduct ;  the  formative  agen- 
cies of  taste,  of  self-respect,  of  ambitions,  of  self- 
love  within  right  limits,  of  emulation,  of  competi- 
tion, of  loyalty  to  social  ties,  the  atmosphere  of 
kindly  joy,  of  fraternal  intercourse,  of  play  gov- 
erned by  good  feeling,  of  happy  and  useful  occu- 
pation ;  —  all  of  these  are  legitimate  means  of 
reaching  and  training  the  moral  nature,  and  not 
one  should  be  regarded  as  unworthy. 

But  when,  as  I  can  sadly  testify,  not  one  of 
these  avenues  lies  open  to  many  poor  little  wrecks 
in  our  public-school  population,  and  the  teacher 
beleaguers  their  moral  nature  in  vain  with  the 
heavy  artillery  of  moral  law  and  moral  penalties, 
or,  I  might  say,  immoral  penalties,  for  moral  delin- 
quencies ;  when  the  pathetic  little  boy,  ragged,  dirty, 
and  stupid,  is  sent  to  the  corner  with  the  cruel 
anathema  of  "  bad  boy  "  day  after  day,  or  calloused 
with  the  rattan  for  not  liking  to  come  where  he  is 
greeted  with  its  sting;  when  the  pharisaic  teacher 
assumes  the  right  to  mete  out  retributive  justice, 
and  deal  out  his  "  deserts  "  to  the  child  who  has 
never  had  a  chance  to  feel  the  sympathy  in  which 
alone  the  moral  instinct  can  bud  and  bloom,  who 
has  not,  even  at  school,  felt  the  invigorating  power 
of  respect  for  his  capacity  or  his  achievement,  or 


42        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

even  for  his  personality ;  when  he  is  shut  out  from 
all  that  the  moral  nature  can  grow  by  directly, 
then  start  afresh  from  the  side  of  his  physical 
needs  and  capabilities  :  feed  him,  clothe  him,  wash 
him,  and  teach  him  to  hold  up  his  head,  to  exer- 
cise his  limbs,  to  control  his  posture,  to  train  his 
hands  in  some  useful  work,  to  use  a  few  simple 
tools,  to  believe  in  himself  as  an  agent  to  will  and 
to  do,  endowed  with  organs  for  his  own  uses,  for 
his  own  achievement,  for  helping  others,  for 
acquiring  skill,  for  creating  something,  for  stand- 
ing up  by  the  side  of  his  fellows,  not  in  humiliation, 
but  in  brotherhood.  Start  in  with  the  develop- 
ment of  his  muscles,  with  provision  for  his  bodily 
nourishment  ;  make  him  warm  enough,  clean 
enough,  and  decently  clothed  ;  give  him  work  to  do 
and  some  natural  tangible  result  which  he  values 
from  its  well-doing ;  especially  put  him  in  the  way  of 
being  a  help  to  some  one  who  can  appreciate  his 
efforts  and  keep  up  his  faith  and  courage,  and  you 
have  laid  the  foundation  of  a  moral  growth,  and 
cleared  the  space  between  him  and  good  character, 
so  that  he  can  see  and  aim  for  the  goal. 

There  is  no  longer  a  doubt  that  the  whole  logic 
of  moral  and  mental  training,  through  physical 
training,  will  hold  in  psychology,  in  physiology, 
in  ethics,  and  in  essential  religious  develop- 
ment. 

Heretofore  we  have  not  only  been  accustomed 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  43 

to  confine  the  intelligence  to  the  brain,  but  we 
have  regarded  the  moral  nature  as  something  quite 
cut  off  from  the  body  and  the  mind.  Now  we  are 
learning  the  inseparableness  of  mind  and  matter, 
of  soul  and  body.  We  no  longer  think  of  the  soul 
.  as  dwelling  in  some  inaccessible  organ  or  hidden 
gland,  but  we  recognize  its  expression  in  every 
activity,  and  we  try  to  reach  it  through  every 
avenue.  One  thing  is  certain,  we  shall  never  be 
able  to  reach  it  through  atrophied  organs  or  dead 
tissues.  We  must  wake  up  the  whole  organism, 
that  the  mind  and  the  soul  may  be  developed  sym- 
metrically and  expressed  freely. 

When  we  are  starting  on  a  new  outlook  of 
study,  we  have  to  begin  with  simple  steps  and 
go  slowly.  In  this  new  march  toward  the  citadel 
of  mind-science,  we  must  take  for  our  subjects  of 
study  the  least  complicated  problems  and  make 
the  most  gradual  advances.  We  may  take  for  our 
study  of  mind,  a  case  where  mind  has  as  yet  made 
no  distinct  expression  of  itself,  where  the  body 
attends  only  to  its  involuntary  activities,  where  no 
sign  of  personality  is  yet  betrayed.  What  kind 
of  training  will  be  necessary  or  available  to  catch 
the  first  gleam  of  intelligence  lying  inert  within  ? 
Bodily  movements,  physical  excitations,  are  not 
only  the  only  means  possible,  but  the  simplest 
and  most  fundamental  points  of  attack  upon  the 
passive  mind.  Rub  the  apparently  idiotic  child 


44       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE   NEW  EDUCATION 

gently,  roll  it  easily  at  times,  give  it  such  exercise 
as  it  is  capable  of  responding  to,  move  its  limbs 
as  nearly  in  accordance  with  the  natural  and  vol- 
untary movements  of  a  normal  human  develop- 
ment as  practicable,  administer  this  stimulus  at 
regular  intervals,  and  gradually  a  habit  of  desire  for 
such  stimulus  arises  ;  with  the  desire  responded  to, 
comes  some  manifestation  of  that  desire,  the  incip- 
ient expression  of  the  will,  the  germ  of  intelligent 
and  voluntary  action.  Study  the  case  of  Sylvanus, 
described  so  minutely  and  scientifically,  yet  so 
simply,  by  James  B.  Richards,  and  recapitulated 
by  Dr.  Wey  at  Mrs.  Hemenway's  Physical  Train- 
ing Conference. 

Froebel  has  had  perfect  faith  in  the  interrela- 
tion and  harmonious  training  of  the  child.  It  is 
one  of  his  characteristic  doctrines.  On  whichever 
side  you  apply  this  great  principle  of  child-culture, 
it  will  come  out  victorious  ;  if  the  moral  nature 
has  been  stunted,  all  the  organs  of  nourishment 
or  of  effort  dwarfed  by  an  inherited  deterioration 
of  brain  or  moral  power,  then  we  must  operate 
constructively  and  from  the  side  least  affected 
by  circumstance  or  habit :  we  must  study  those 
laws  which  may  be  as  clearly  observed  in  the 
natural  or  material  processes  as  in  the  mental 
and  spiritual;  those  laws  which  are  revealed 
most  plainly  by  material  processes,  but  which  are 
universal  in  all  grades  of  activity ;  those  eternal 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  45 

laws  which  are  presented  for  our  discovery  in  the 
material  universe,  until  we  may  be  strong  enough 
to  perceive  them  in  the  spiritual;  —  by  these  we 
may  work  out  the  evolution  of  the  moral  nature 
and  change  the  brute  to  a  man. 

An  eminent  authority  says,  "  Bodily  exercise 
constitutes  so  considerable  and  necessary  an  ele- 
ment in  all  human  training,  that  physical  training 
is  entitled  to  be  recognized  and  provided  for  as  an 
integral  and  indispensable  factor  in  the  education 
of  children."  "Muscular  exercise,  when  properly 
chosen,  regulated,  and  guided,  may  make  a  boy  into 
a  better  man  than  his  father  was,  and  enable  him 
to  transmit  to  his  progeny  a  veritable  aptitude  for 
better  thoughts  and  actions."  "Physical  training 
has  long  been  recognized  as  an  indispensable 
means  for  awakening  and  developing  mental 
faculty  in  idiots,  and  has  been  employed  with 
astonishing  success  in  the  training  of  criminal 
dullards." 

Not  only  general  physical  training,  but  special 
training  of  the  hand,  of  the  eye,  of  all  the  sense- 
powers,  will  make  for  this  training  of  the  mental 
and  moral  nature.  A  very  dull  child  who  does 
nothing  with  books,  who  is  idle,  mischievous,  and 
untrustworthy,  will  become  at  once  interested  in 
some  useful  industry,  and  through  that  stimulus 
will  feel  through  all  his  fibres  a  new  impulse  for 
doing,  until  he  not  only  accomplishes  good  work 


46       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

in  the  new  direction,  but  takes  up  his  old  tasks 
with  fresh  energy,  grows  interested  in  his  books, 
and  makes  strides  toward  victory,  both  mentally 
and  morally.  Tim  was  an  example  of  this  whole- 
some infection  ;  from  being  the  nuisance  of  the 
schoolroom,  the  despair  of  his  teacher,  the  disgrace 
of  his  mother,  he  turned  to  a  chance  in  the  cooking- 
class,  and  was  made  over  by  his  delighted  interest 
in  working  there  ;  he  not  only  scoured  the  boiler 
and  polished  the  stove  with  eager  hands,  but  he 
cleaned  himself,  learned  to  cook,  kept  at  work, 
brightened  up  and  changed  in  his  whole  aspect  as 
a  boy  and  as  a  student,  and  by  the  close  of  the 
term  did  all  his  mother's  cooking  and  housework 
while  she  went  out  washing,  studied  his  lessons 
quite  creditably  in  school  and  at  home,  corrected 
his  vicious  habits,  and  was  promoted  at  the  end  of 
the  year,  a  respectable,  useful  boy  and  promising 
pupil,  as  well  as  a  good  son.  So  close  is  the  link- 
age of  nerve  and  muscle,  of  brain-power  and  head- 
power,  of  character  and  activity. 

The  nervous  effect  of  a  vivid  mental  image  is 
well  known,  but  few  appreciate  how  intense  it 
often  is  in  the  experience  of  the  child  ;  and  when 
the  nervous  effect  is  in  thorough  operation  how 
close  its  connection  with  the  bodily  sensations, 
tissues,  and  functions.  The  child  may  be  easily 
thrown  into  a  panic  by  a  frightful  imagination  or 
a  strong  picture  of  distress;  he  may  be  made  ill 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  47 

by  its  continuance  in  his  mind  ;  a  vivid  impression 
of  disease  haunts  him,  until  the  imprint  settles 
into  his  physical  organism  and  creates  a  tendency 
to  that  disease.  It  is  on  this  account  that  I  can- 
not approve  some  of  our  methods  of  temperance 
instruction ;  and,  although  their  lofty  purpose  se- 
cures my  respect,  I  cannot  avoid  the  conclusion 
that  the  manner  of  their  inculcation  is  unpsycho- 
logical  as  well  as  unphysiological,  and  may  bring 
about  the  very  conditions  they  hold  up  to  the 
child's  abhorrence.  Much  of  our  study  of  ele- 
mentary science  is  open  to  the  same  objection, 
and  is  certainly  not  suited  to  young  children, 
whose  tissues  are  so  impressionable,  and  whose 
sympathetic  imagination  is  so  quick  arid  responsive. 
There  are  suggestions  which  come  from  my 
own  experience  of  some  influences  to  be  recog- 
nized in  the  treatment  of  the  child  in  the  school, 
and  in  the  relations  of  the  teacher  to  him,  which 
lead  us  into,  perhaps,  too  abstruse  a  philosophy 
and  too  vague  a  region  of  thought.  The  thought- 
ful teacher  will  experiment  beyond  his  dogma, 
and  to-day  we  are  bound  to  pursue  laboratory 
methods  in  education.  My  friend  Mr.  Swan, 
already  quoted,  has  supported  many  of  my  own 
gleams  of  psychological  discovery  by  testimony  as 
to  his  own.  He  says  that  when  his  class  is  dull, 
he  is  often  able  to  brighten  it  by  reseating  the 
pupils.  There  seem  to  be  centres  of  power  and 


48        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

centres  of  apathy  in  the  room ;  he  scatters  those 
centres,  putting  a  bright,  earnest  girl  in  the  midst 
of  a  stupid  group,  and  she  becomes  a  nucleus  of 
light  and  activity ;  the  dull  girls  around  her  wake 
up,  the  mental  atmosphere  of  the  room  is  stirred 
by  waves  of  refreshment,  the  moral  power  of  the 
class  is  lifted  and  strengthened,  and  the  work  of 
the  room  moves  forward.  It  is  like  the  position 
of  each  brain-cell  in  the  reticulated  nerve-tissue 
of  the  brain ;  magnetic  lines  are  formed,  and 
unseen  currents  are  started  from  one  brain-cell  to 
another,  until  the  whole  brain  is  a  living  mesh  of 
stimulative  agencies.  How  rich  a  reservoir  of 
physiological  and  psychological  truth  is  indicated 
by  such  suggestions  of  experience  as  these,  and 
how  much  has  educational  science  to  learn  about 
these  subtle  modes  of  communication  of  energy  or 
contagion  of  apathy ! 

But  I  turn  away  from  the  alluring  fields  of 
speculative  philosophy  in  this  direction,  to  hold 
myself  to  the  educational  certainties  of  the  theme. 
I  await  the  swift  demonstrations  of  science  for 
your  profession  and  mine,  and  prophesy  immense 
educational  and  physiological  advance  for  us  all 
within  the  coming  twenty-five  years  ;  for  we  are 
getting  hold  of  the  great  linkage  of  truth,  and 
learning  to  feel  for  the  thread  in  the  labyrinth  of 
nature  ;  we  are  recognizing  the  natural  laws  as  the 
same  in  all  grades  of  being,  the  natural  processes 


PHYSICAL    TRAINING  49 

of  growth  as  represented  by  what  we  can  see  and 
handle  in  the  laboratory  of  this  life,  so  that  the 
invisible  things  of  God  are  by  them  clearly  seen ; 
we  have  our  pattern,  and  we  can  work  to  scale  in 
the  training  of  immortal  souls,  as  well  as  in  the  pre- 
servation and  healing  of  our  mortal  bodies  and  the 
successful  companionship  of  the  two  until  they 
part,  to  meet,  perchance,  in  some  happier  clime  in 
closer  harmony  and  larger  freedom. 


THE   MORAL   PROBLEM   IN   THE 
PUBLIC   SCHOOLS 


OPENING     OF    DISCUSSION    BEFORE     THE     NEW 
ENGLAND    WOMEN'S   CLUB. 


A  FEW  fundamental  principles  which  modern 
psychology  has  reached,  will  put  us  in  a  reason- 
able attitude  toward  this  discussion.  We  have 
learned  something  of  the  interrelation  of  body, 
mind,  and  soul.  We  are  beginning  to  perceive 
that  the  moral  nature  is  governed  by  the  same 
laws  as  the  physical  and  intellectual  natures. 

It  has  been  thought  that  the  schools  are  dis- 
tinctively for  the  training  of  the  mind.  The  "soul 
must  not  be  included  in  the  consideration  of  the 
child's  progress  while  in  school.  People  nowa- 
days seem  to  be  afraid  to  speak  of  the  soul  in  con- 
nection with  the  child's  education.  "We  do  not 
know  that  there  is  any  such  thing,"  say  the  agnos- 
tics. "  We  know  about  it,  but  it  is  the  business 
of  the  churches  to  train  it,"  say  the  bigots.  "  The 
least  said  about  it,  the  better,"  say  the  tax-payers. 
"  We  have  nothing  to  do  with  it,  train  the  body, 

50 


THE  MORAL  PROBLEM  51 

teach  the  mind,"  say  the  advocates  of  secular  edu- 
cation. "  We  do  not  know  whether  there  be  any 
Holy  Ghost,"  say  the  materialists  of  all  ages. 

I  go  into  the  schools  and  try  to  analyze  the 
child-nature.  Can  I  separate  and  disconnect 
body,  mind,  and  soul  in  order  to  meet  the  demand 
of  the  day  for  purely  secular  education  ?  I  might 
as  well  undertake  to  dissect  living  bodies.  My 
attitude  toward  the  child  is  such  that  I  cannot 
deal  with  him  piece-meal.  He  is  a  threefold 
unity  to  me  ;  if  I  shut  my  eyes  to  his  soul,  I  can- 
not see  the  child  at  all.  His  body  is  not  himself, 
his  mind  is  not  all  of  himself ;  where  is  his  love, 
his  joy,  his  desire,  his  responsive  self  ?  Do  you 
say  I  must  not  recognize  these,  his  soul-functions, 
in  his  training  and  development  in  the  school  ? 
You  give  me  a  puzzle  I  cannot  solve.  The  very 
first  thing  I  see  in  the  child  is  sympathy,  and  that 
is  the  first  thing  I  offer  him.  I  take  my  own  soul 
with  me  to  school,  I  could  not  go  to  the  child 
without  it :  in  the  contact  of  my  soul  with  the 
soul  of  the  child  lies  all  my  hope  of  helping  even 
his  mental  development.  Love  is  our  atmos- 
phere, our  condition  of  activity  ;  banish  it  and  you 
are  in  the  dullest,  coldest,  and  most  barren  of 
schoolrooms,  where  all  that  is  taught  is  a  blot 
and  a  drudgery.  You  agree  that  at  this  stage  of 
the  science  of  education,  we  cannot  take  less  than 
"the  whole  child"  into  our  scheme  of  public- 


52        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

school  work.  It  is  necessary  that  we  involve  the 
body  and  soul  as  well  as  the  mind  in  our  efforts  to 
evolve  human  growth  and  power.  It  is  just  as 
great  a  mistake  to  try  to  train  the  mind  as  dis- 
tinct from  the  soul,  as  to  try  to  appeal  to  the  soul 
without  involving  the  mind-functions.  We  must 
give  the  child  a  chance  to  exercise  all  his  powers, 
and  draw  upon  all  his  relationships  wherever 
we  attempt  to  educate  him,  whether  at  home,  at 
school,  or  in  the  church  ;  we  must  work  in  the 
line  of  his  associated  activities.  If  the  ecclesias- 
tics ask  me  to  leave  out  the  soul  in  the  training  of 
the  mind,  I  ask  them  to  leave  out  the  mind  in  the 
training  of  the  soul ;  one  is  as  great  an  impossi- 
bility as  the  other.  The  psychologist  under- 
stands that  the  whole  nature  is  involved  in  every 
vital  exercise  of  any  part  of  it.  The  thorough 
arousing  of  any  healthful  activity  involves  moral 
activity.  This  principle  may  serve  us  in  our 
efforts  to  reach  character. 

A  direct  attack  on  the  ethical  sense  is  not 
always  the  best  way  to  correct  moral  short-com- 
ing. Maxims  will  not  affect  the  feelings  or  the 
will.  Outward  conduct  is  the  expression  of  in- 
ward conditions  ;  we  must  treat  conduct  symptom- 
atically.  If  a  child  is  restless,  give  him  some- 
thing to  do  which  he  will  like  to  do.  If  a  child  has 
no  moral  ambition,  plant  self-respect  as  a  ladder 
by  which  he  can  climb  to  it ;  do  not  complete  his 


THE  MORAL  PROBLEM  53 

degradation  by  a  degrading  punishment.  Handle 
the  child's  moral  nature  as  if  it  were  that  of  a 
child,  and  not  of  a  man;  treat  it  constructively; 
build  it  from  the  foundation ;  attack  it  where 
you  find  it :  there  is  always  same  open  way ;  do 
not  knock  at  a  closed  door.  Avoid  the  mistake 
of  regarding  the  moral  conduct  of  children  as 
wholly  external,  and,  so  far  as  school  is  concerned, 
to  be  treated  wholly  as  a  matter  of  external  dis- 
cipline. Peter  is  inattentive,  perhaps  mischievous, 
pinches  his  neighbor,  tears  his  book  ;  the  adjust- 
ment is  simple.  Peter  goes  into  the  corner  with 
his  back  to  the  school ;  if  he  is  on  the  teacher's 
list  of  "  bad  boys,"  he  gets  a  rattaning,  after 
which  he  is  sullenly  or  timorously  quiet  and 
stupid.  Many  a  teacher  is  satisfied  with  this 
sequence,  and  regards  it  as  a  settlement  of  her 
moral  account  with  Peter.  It  may  have  to  be 
repeated  until  it  becomes  a  regular  habit  of  deal- 
ing, and  Peter  regards  it  as  his  programme  of 
school-work. 

But  what  has  it  to  do  with  Peter's  moral  nature  ? 
Nothing  whatever ;  that  is  as  dormant  as  it  was  at 
the  outset.  It  may  be  assumed  that  the  school 
has  nothing  to  do  with  Peter's  moral  nature, 
that  it  has  simply  to  protect  itself,  and  secure  the 
rights  of  the  attentive  and  well-behaved  pupils. 
There  is  a  show  of  reason  in  that  assumption. 

But  if  we  assume  that  Peter  goes  to  school  to 


54       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

receive  the  right  stimulus  and  development  of  his 
whole  nature,  and  chiefly  of  his  moral  nature  as 
being  the  inclusive  and  determining  element  in 
his  career  as  a  human  being,  what  has  such  a 
purely  external  mode  of  treatment  done  toward 
meeting  the  demand  ?  Nothing :  on  the  contrary, 
it  has  degraded  and  dwarfed  the  development,  not 
only  of  the  moral  nature,  but  inclusively  of  the 
intellectual  nature  also.  The  teacher  has  not 
touched  her  first  responsibility  for  the  poor  boy ; 
she  has  taken  upon  herself  the  office  of  judging 
him,  rather  than  that  of  helping  him ;  she  has 
labelled  him  "bad,"  and,  perhaps,  undertaken  to 
deal  out  retributive  justice  to  him,  neither  of 
which  she  has  the  least  shadow  of  right  to  do ;  in 
fact,  she  shows  herself  shallow  or  pharisaic  to 
think  of  it  as  a  right,  much  less  a  duty. 

Suppose  Peter  has  done  something  really  bad ; 
is  he  therefore  a  "bad  boy  "  ?  Suppose  he  repents 
even  before  his  punishment  is  inflicted,  and  means 
to  do  better  ;  who  then  has  a  right  to  punish  him  ? 
The  teacher  says,  "  I  told  Peter  I  should  punish 
him  :  he  knows  he  deserved  it ;  and  I  must  punish 
him  because  he  deserved  it,  and  for  the  good  of 
the  school  as  an  example  and  warning."  What  a 
monstrous  attitude  for  a  man  or  woman  to  take 
toward  a  little  child ! 

What  is  the  only  legitimate  object  of  punish- 
ment? certainly  reformation.  When  a  teacher 


THE  MORAL  PROBLEM  55 

considers  it  necessary  to  punish  after  confession 
and  repentance,  he  outruns  the  limit  of  his  au- 
thority and  responsibility,  and  does  what  no  mor- 
tal has  a  right  to  do.  His  business  is  with  the 
needs,  not  the  deserts,  of  the  child.  The  teacher 
has  no  endowed  privilege  of  adjusting  or  compen- 
sating or  avenging  the  wrong.  •  "  Vengeance  is 
mine,  I  will  repay,  saith  the  Lord."  Even  the 
civil  power  no  longer  assumes  a  retributive  right ; 
that  day  is  gone  by  for  the  State.  The  criminal 
is  punished  only  for  his  own  reformation  and  the 
protection  of  society  as  a  deterrent  from  crime. 
In  a  family  or  school,  the  social  factor  may  be  an 
element  in  determining  the  necessity  of  punish- 
ment. The  school  must  not  be  too  much  inter- 
rupted by  the  behavior  of  a  few  pupils.  The  in- 
telligent child  understands  that,  and  appreciates 
the  duty  of  the  teacher  to  protect  the  good  pupils 
and  prevent  the  bad  pupils  from  defrauding  both 
themselves  and  others  of  privileges  which  they 
have  a  right  to  enjoy. 

This  principle  of  moral  administration  seems 
hardly  to  have  been  recognized  in  our  Boston 
schools.  Corporal  punishment  appears  to  be  the 
most  frequent  method  of  dealing  with  the  moral 
delinquent. 

Even  in  the  primary  schools,  faith  in  love  and 
justice  seems  to  be  in  a  state  of  apathy,  and  fear 
is  the  common  appeal.  A  reform  in  this  direction 


56        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

was  attempted  some  years  ago,  but  failed  of  sup- 
port, and  the  subject  remained  dormant  for  a  long 
time. 

In  the  winter  of  1889,  after  brooding  over  this 
sad  condition  of  the  moral  problem  in  our  schools 
more  and  more,  I  felt  constrained  to  express 
myself  in  the  matter,  and  addressed  a  semi-official 
letter  to  each  of  the  grammar  masters  as  follows  :  — 

MASON  STREET,  Feb.  6,  1889. 

MY  DEAR  SIR,  —  One  of  the  most  unexpected  features  of  the 
Boston  school-system  to  visitors  from  abroad  is  its  arbitrary  and 
mechanical  method  of  punishment.  The  rattan,  on  the  desk  of 
the  master  or  in  the  hands  of  every  assistant,  is  a  genuine  sur- 
prise to  a  stranger. 

I  feel  humiliated,  as  a  representative  of  the  Boston  schools, 
that  they  have  not  yet  outgrown  such  a  method  of  discipline.  I 
have  found  the  subject  a  very  discouraging  one  in  any  plan  of 
moral  development  for  our  children.  If  they  are  dealt  with  by 
brutish  methods,  we  may  well  despair  of  evolving  character. 
Certainly  the  schools  ought  to  be  reformatory  rather  than  penal 
for  degraded  or  insubordinate  pupils.  The  more  I  investigate  the 
extent  of  corporal  punishment  in  our  grammar  and  primary 
schools,  the  more  I  am  overwhelmed  with  its  apparently  excessive 
use,  both  for  frequency  and  severity,  and  for  trivial  misdemeanors. 
Within  a  few  months  several  cases  of  very  culpable  abuse  of  its 
administration  have  come  to  my  notice.  I  am  quite  sure  that  the 
monthly  reports  of  the  masters  give  no  adequate  representation  of 
the  amount  and  degree  of  Jjiis  punishment,  because  these  reports 
depend  upon  reports  by  the  several  teachers  in  the  various  depart, 
ments,  and  such  sub-reports  are  open  to  very  grave  suspicion  of 
inaccuracy,  in  some  cases  are  known  to  be  partial. 

I  have  frequently  conferred  with  masters  on  this  subject,  and 
in  almost  every  case  they  tell  me  that  such  punishments  are 
inflicted  by  their  assistants  only,  or  if  by  themselves,  for  offences 


THE  MORAL  rROBLEM  57 

reported  by  their  assistants,  —  very  rarely  for  insubordination 
under  their  own  eyes.  I  believe  that  our  grammar  masters  are 
qualified  to  correct  faults  of  school  conduct  in  a  more  dignified 
way  and  by  more  ennobling  means.  The  rattan  is  not  more 
degrading  and  hardening  to  the  pupil  than  to  the  teacher;  and 
other  handling  of  the  pupil  for  punishment  is  equally  so.  A  man 
or  woman  is  lowered  in  the  human  scale  by  striking  or  personally 
assaulting  a  child.  If  a  teacher  does  not  feel  himself  possessed 
of  enough  sympathy  and  moral  power  to  govern  radically,  and 
develop  character  by  personal  example  and  appeal,  or  if  he  has 
not  resources  enough  in  his  methods  of  training  to  secure  good 
conduct  from  his  pupils,  he  is  not  suited  to  his  work,  or  else  he 
has  too  great  distrust  of  himself,  which  I  think  is  usually  the  case. 
Several  masters  have  told  me  that  they  would  engage  to  do  with- 
out corporal  punishment  if  they  could  select  their  own  assistants 
from  the  primary  classes  up. 

I  hope  that  those  who  feel  ready  to  undertake  purely  moral 
methods  of  discipline  under  favorable  circumstances,  will  at  once 
initiate  a  course  of  action  to  bring  about  such  circumstances.  I 
believe  that  a  general  adoption  of  manual  training  would  make 
much  of  the  punishment  unnecessary,  inasmuch  as  a  great  deal  of 
school  disorder  arises  merely  from  want  of  occupation  and  from 
idle  mischief ;  and  the  ability  and  opportunity  to  produce  something 
would  stimulate  self-respect,  which  is  the  first  step  toward  reform. 
I  have  sometimes  thought  that  an  ungraded  class  in  every  building 
would  be  a  moral  safety-valve,  and,  if  put  under  teachers  of 
exceptional  power  and  wisdom  as  well  as  sympathy,  might  become 
a  probationary  and  reformatory  place  of  relief  for  the  school ;  or, 
there  might  be  a  sort  of  half-way  school  in  a  few  localities,  where 
a  boy  should  be  put  on  probation  before  being  sent  either  back  to 
his  own  class  or  to  the  truant  school. 

At  least  I  am  quite  sure  that  only  the  master  of  a  school 
should  administer  corporal  punishment,  and  then  not  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  class,  nor  except  in  the  presence  of  some  other  authorized 
person,  such  as  the  Chairman  of  the  District  Committee,  the 
Superintendent  or  the  Supervisor  of  the  school,  that  there  may  be 
some  unprejudiced  and  competent  witness  to  the  act. 


58        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

I  think  public  sentiment  will  before  long  demand  the  abolition 
of  corporal  punishment  in  the  schools.  If  all  the  cases  of  its 
abuse  were  spread  before  the  public,  that  day  would  already  have 
arrived.  We  cannot  hope  to  stem  the  current  of  popular  impa- 
tience with  such  methods  and  such  barbarities  as  might  be  brought 
to  light.  Will  it  not  be  wise  for  the  masters  themselves  to  pro- 
pose and  carry  out  as  soon  as  possible  some  scheme  looking 
toward  the  abatement,  if  not  the  abolition,  of  any  mechanical 
means  of  correction  of  school  conduct,  so  as  to  save  themselves 
from  a  compulsory  abolition  which  must  ensue  before  very  long  ? 
I  would  like  to  refer  the  masters  to  the  accompanying  School 
Document,  in  which  the  subject  of  corporal  punishment  is  ably 
and  exhaustively  treated. 

I  beg  those  whom  I  address  to  excuse  the  urgency  of  my 
appeal,  on  the  ground  of  my  deep  abhorrence  of  such  unphilosoph- 
ical  methods  of  moral  government,  and  of  my  frequent  and  dis- 
trusting knowledge  of  their  use  and  abuse,  as  well  as  on  account  of 
my  earnest  sympathy  with  both  teachers  and  pupils,  my  love  of 
children,  and  my  faith  in  the  moral  power  and  high  motive  of  the 
grammar  masters  as  individuals  and  as  a  body.  I  am  convinced 
that  a  reform  once  undertaken,  the  way  will  become  easier  than  is 
apprehended,  and  the  rattan  will  be  laid  on  the  shelf  forever,  as 
far  beyond  resuscitation  in  our  grammar  and  primary  schools  as 
it  has  proved  to  be  in  our  high  schools  and  in  the  classes  of  girls 
everywhere. 

Very  respectfully, 

LOUISA  P.  HOPKINS. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  two  resources  are  sug- 
gested as  a  substitute  for  corporal  punishment,  both 
of  which  are  now  fairly  in  operation.  Manual 
training  has  proved  itself  very  effectual  as  a  moral 
tonic  ;  the  "  probationary  "  or  "  parental  "  school 
is  taking  definite  shape,  and  is  about  being  inaugu- 
rated as  a  part  of  our  school-system.  Mr.  S.  B. 


THE  MORAL  PROBLEM  59 

Capen  has  urged  and  fostered  the  undertaking,  and 
Superintendent  Seaver  has  contributed  to  its 
success  a  most  important  and  enlightening  docu- 
ment on  -reformatory  methods ;  this,  with  the  Su- 
perintendent's Annual  Report,  issued  soon  after 
the  above  letter  was  distributed  to  the  masters, 
has  placed  Mr.  Seaver  clearly  against  arbitrary 
methods  of  dealing  with  the  moral  problem,  and  in 
the  front  rank  of  progressive  moral  educators.  The 
School  Committee  made  an  elaborate  report  on  the 
subject  of  Corporal  Punishment,  in  response  to 
the  Annual  Report  of  the  Superintendent,  which 
called  the  attention  of  the  country  to  it,  protected 
the  teachers  from  the  censure  which  had  assailed 
them,  and  claimed  for  them  the  prerogative  of 
administering  corporal  punishment  as  before  ;  it 
is,  therefore,  still  a  blot  upon  the  Boston  school- 
system  ;  but  the  world  moves,  and  we  believe 
the  schools  must  advance  and  arrive  at  the  abol- 
ishment of  such  false  methods  before  long.  A 
better  comprehension  of  the  laws  and  activities  of 
the  moral  nature,  a  clearer  understanding  of  its 
relations  and  close  connection  with  the  mental  and 
bodily  activities,  and  the  application  of  sympathy, 
tact,  and  common-sense  to  individual  cases  of 
wrong-doing,  will  do  much  toward  the  clearing  up 
of  difficulties  and  the  right  solution  of  the  moral 
problem  in  our  schools. 


EDUCATION   OF  THE   SOUL 


ADDRESS  BEFORE    THE  MORAL  EDUCATION 
ASSOCIA  TION 


THE  soul  is  fed  and  nourished  by  ideals,  and 
grows  by  exercise  of  its  functions,  just  as  the  body 
grows,  fed  by  what  it  can  assimilate  of  its  environ- 
ment and  built  up  in  every  part  of  its  structure  by 
exercise  of  its  functions  ;  just  as  the  mind  is  fed 
by  ideas  received  through  the  senses,  assimilated 
into  the  mental  organism  by  processes  of  thought, 
and  growing  by  exercise  of  the  functions  of  percep- 
tion, memory,  imagination,  judgment,  and  aesthetic 
•  taste.  This  is  the  law  of  growth  for  body,  mind, 
and  soul. 

What  are  these  ideals  which  nourish  the  soul, 
and  how  are  they  received  ?  truth,  love,  justice, 
order,  beauty,  harmony,  purity,  and  all  that  makes 
for  righteousness, — these  are  our  soul-environ- 
ment ;  they  can  be  perceived  by  the  child,  and  by  all 
conscious  personalities  ;  they  can  be  assimilated  by 
love  and  desire,  and  enter  into  the  heart  to  build  up 
character,  which  is  the  organic  result  of  soul-growth. 

60 


EDUCATION  OF  THE  SOUL  6 1 

Right  habits  of  thought,  feeling,  and  will,  right  ac- 
tions and  life,  furnish  the  exercise  of  soul-functions 
which  we  must  arouse  in  the  child,  that  the  objects 
of  such  exercise  may  enter  into  his  spiritual  struc- 
ture and  evolve  nobility  of  character ;  and  with 
this  growth  of  right  habit  comes  the  perception  of 
of  ideals.  "  He  that  doeth  the  will,  shall  know  of 
the  doctrine." 

How  are  we  to  present  these  ideals  on  which 
the  soul  of  the  child  is  to  feed  ?  how  can  he  assim- 
ilate such  elements  of  nourishment  ?  I  think  the 
first  presentation  which  reaches  the  child's  percep- 
tion, either  consciously  or  unconsciously,  is  the  em- 
bodiment of  these  ideals  in  the  life  of  those  whom 
he  loves ;  for  the  child  gets  comparatively  little 
except  through  the  medium  of  personality,  and  in 
order  to  draw  near  to  that  personality  so  as  to 
imbibe  its  spirit,  he  must  love  it  and  be  in  sym- 
pathy with  it.  The  mother,  the  father,  the  teacher, 
must  show  him,  by  constant  manifestation  in  life, 
what  truth,  purity,  justice,  order,  and  love  are, 
essentially  ;  after  a  while  he  associates  a  certain 
reality  with  these  ideals  ;  he  transfers  his  conception 
of  them  to  a  Being  whose  existence  he  will  conceive 
for  himself  if  it  is  not  postulated  for  him.  As  soon 
as  he  gains  the  concept  of  a  Creator,  an  All-Father, 
a  Universal  Spirit,  he  will  be  able  to  grow  steadily, 
because  his  ideal  can  never  disappoint  him.  The 
knowledge  of  God  is  the  first  distinct  step  in  the 


62        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

growth  of  the  soul.  The  fear  (or  apprehension)  of 
God  is  the  beginning  of  (divine)  wisdom.  A  cen- 
tral or  organizing  concept  is  established,  around 
which  all  subordinate  ideals  may  gather.  I  would 
not  attempt  to  train  the  spiritual  sense,  or  develop 
spiritual  life,  without  this  initiatory  step  of  belief  in 
a  God  of  love  and  power.  The  moral  sense,  the 
recognition  of  moral  right  and  the  obligation  to 
righteousness,  will  never  be  aroused  by  the  appeal 
to  a  mere  abstraction.  The  concrete  good  must 
be  a  subject  of  faith  ;  God  must  be  named  to  the 
child,  and  enter  into  relations  with  him  as  the 
verity  which  he  must  build  upon.  Nothing  is 
more  natural  to  the  child  than  this  sense  of  God 
as  a  real  presence  ;  he  lives  in  the  light  of  this 
conscious  relationship,  and,  if  not  denied,  will 
desire  it  more  than  all  other  sources  of  comfort  and 
happiness.  God  is  seeking  him,  and  he  is  seeking 
God,  by  every  avenue  of  beauty  and  love  which  is 
open  to  him,  either  in  the  friends  who  surround 
him,  the  thoughts  communicated  to  him,  or  the 
works  of  nature  in  which  he  at  once  recognizes 
the  Creator's  love  and  thought. 

I  held  a  flower  in  my  hand  as  I  stood  before  a 
class  of  neglected  children.  All  eyes  were  fixed 
upon  it,  they  love  flowers  so,  these  poor  little 
ones  !  "  I  like  to  hold  this  lovely  flower  in  my 
hand,"  I  said.  "Why  do  you  think  I  like  it  ?  what 
does  it  make  me  think  of  ?  " —  "  It  makes  you  think 


EDUCATION  OF  THE  SOUL  63 

of  God,"  said  a  boy  with  simple  gravity.  "  Yes,  it 
almost  seems  as  if  God  held  my  hand  as  I  hold 
this  flower  which  He  has  made ;  it  is  beautiful. 
You  may  hold  it  for  a  moment  and  see  what  God 
thought  ;  how  perfect  it  is  !  what  a  color  it  has  ! 
how  sweet  a  perfume !  "  So  we  should  connect 
with  the  ideal  of  God,  the  ideas  of  symmetry, 
beauty,  color,  and  all  that  gives  us  delight  in 
nature  ;  we  should  connect  with  it,  also,  the  cease- 
less activity  of  creative  love  and  force,  for  creation 
is  quite  plain  to  the  child  as  a  thing  of  the  present 
and  not  of  the  past ;  he  sees  the  grass  growing 
beneath  his  feet,  he  sees  the  bare  stems  breaking 
into  leaf,  the  bud  opening  into  flower,  and  the 
seed  ripening  into  fruit  ;  this  endless  cycle  of 
growth  and  renewal  is  to  his  ingenuous  mind  a 
revelation  of  an  ever-present  God.  The  creatures 
all  speak  to  him  of  the  God  who  made  them; 
the  baby  came  from  God  into  the  earthly  home, 
and  dies  but  to  return  like  a  lamb  to  the  fold. 
The  sunset,  the  stars,  the  clouds,  the  gathering 
snow,  and  the  falling  rain  all  go  and  come  at 
God's  bidding  ;  and  why  should  we  not  join  the 
child  in  ascribing  all  these  phenomena  of  nature 
directly  to  Him  who  is  the  origin  and  end  of 
creation  ?  We  need  not  confuse  the  child  with 
secondary  causes ;  if  we  see  steps  in  the  process 
of  evolution,  they  speak  only  of  God's  way  of 
working,  not  of  some  other  creative  agency.  The 


64        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

terrible  fact  is,  that  we  have  grown  away  from 
this  implicit  trust  in  the  Power  that  guides  the 
atom  and  the  star,  and  we  are  trying  to  draw 
the  child  away  with  us  and  perplex  him  as  well  as 
ourselves. 

Contact  with  nature,  then,  leads  the  child  into 
communion  with  God,  and  a  vital  appreciation  of 
those  ideals  which  he  gradually  attaches  to  that 
personality.  I  say  personality,  because  I  am  con- 
vinced by  a  study  of  inward  experience,  as  well  as 
outward  history,  that  nothing  less  than  personality 
will  make  a  magnetic  centre  for  these  exalted 
ideals,  or  even  for  common  moral  discrimination 
and  faith  in  the  requirements  of  a  moral  law. 
Look  at  the  history  of  the  French  Revolution  as 
an  example  of  the  loss  of  conscience  under  the 
denial  of  a  personal  Deity.  Even  Robespierre 
found  it  absolutely  necessary  to  the  recovery  of 
reason  and  order  and  the  stay  of  anarchy,  that 
the  name  of  the  Supreme  Being  should  be  resus- 
citated for  the  French  people  ;  he  retired  to  the 
forest  to  consider  what  should  be  able  to  save  the 
conscience  and  moral  sense  of  the  republic,  and 
he  could  imagine  no  remedy  more  powerful  than 
the  Name  which  is  above  every  name.  By  it  he 
recalled  the  sanity  of  the  populace,  reconstructed 
the  state,  and  the  deluge  of  blood  was  checked. 
We  must  accept  this  as  a  condition  of  human 
growth  and  order,  that  we  should  bow  with  rev- 


EDUCATION  OF  THE  SOUL  65 

erence  and  love,  before  a  personality  which  deigns 
to  hold  converse  with  the  little  child  and  all 
who  become  as  little  children,  and  carry  them 
safely  forward.  As  the  mind  and  soul  develop, 
they  lay  hold  of  ideals  with  a  firmer  grasp;  how 
rapidly  ideals  of  vice  take  possession  of  and  cor- 
rupt the  mind  !  Reading  and  the  company  we 
keep  are  continually  building  up  or  destroying  our 
ideals.  Literature  and  art,  society  and  organiza- 
tions, strengthen  and  define  our  ideals.  The 
poets,  the  prophets,  the  observers  of  nature,  or 
those  who  interpret  for  us  its  symbolism  and  em- 
phasize its  beauty,  are  moulding  us  more  and  more 
into  images  of  the  ideals  they  offer  for  our  assimila- 
tion ;  all  our  experience  and  study  contribute,  day 
by  day,  to  the  clearness  and  fulness  of  the  ideals 
of  life.  Ideality  is  more  and  more  developed,  and 
the  soul  grows  in  its  power  to  form  and  assimi- 
late these  germinating  forces,  till  they  become  a 
spring  of  energy,  and  a  fountain  of  moral  and 
spiritual  life.  And  just  as  exercise  of  the  physical 
organism  constantly  increases  its  power  of  growth, 
so  exercise  of  the  mental  and  moral  powers  con- 
stantly increases  their  power  of  selecting  and 
assimilating  their  proper  nourishment ;  by  practice 
in  acting  in  conformity  to  those  ideals  which  are 
the  soul's  nourishment,  we  gain  in  power  of  ap- 
prehension and  assimilation.  Right  feeling  and 
right  action  make  us  capable  of  right  understand- 


66        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ing.  This  law  is  very  necessary  to  the  training  of 
the  child  as  well  as  of  the  man.  If  we  form  a 
habit  of  loving,  we  learn  more  and  more  what 
love  is  in  its  essence ;  we  understand  more  of  its 
inherent  activities,  and  exalt  our  ideal  of  love  until 
it  approximates  the  highest.  If  we  form  a  habit 
of  envy,  hatred,  malice,  and  all  uncharitableness,  we 
become  incapable  of  apprehending  or  assimilating 
the  ideal  of  love,  and  so  we  go  backward  and 
downward,  we  become  selfish  and  brutish,  and  for- 
feit the  promise  of  soul-growth,  "  Whatsoever 
things  are  lovely,  think  on  these  things." 

Growth  by  exercise  is  from  stage  to  stage : 
first  the  blade,  then  the  ear,  after  that  the  full 
corn  in  the  ear;  it  involves  loss  by  disuse ; 
the  cave  educates  the  fish  in  its  waters  to 
be  blind  ;  the  child  who  is  always  receiving 
cannot  be  generous,  we  are  educating  him  to  be 
selfish  by  constantly  giving  to  him  ;  he  must  give 
in  order  to  become  generous.  Doing  nothing 
educates  the  child  to  laziness ;  keep  the  lazy  boy  at 
work  under  some  inspiration,  practise  him  in 
doing,  practise  the  cross  child  in  smiling  and 
singing  and  playing,  the  selfish  child  in  helping, 
the  proud  child  in  serving,  .the  thoughtless  and 
careless  child  in  responsibility  for  himself  and 
others.  Function  and  structure  act  and  re-act  on 
each  other.  Be  guided  by  this  great  law  in  all 
you  do  for  the  child.  Exercise  the  candidate  for 


EDUCATION  OF   THE  SOUL  6/ 

citizenship  in  fraternal  helpfulness,  in  all  the 
economic  virtues,  in  right  methods  of  work. 
Habit  is  accelerative  :  sow  the  wind  and  reap  the 
whirlwind.  The  boy  who  forgets  to  do  a  duty 
to-day  will  forget  other  duties  and  be  less  sorry 
to-morrow.  At  every  remove  we  get  farther  for- 
ward or  farther  away.  He  who  begins  to  loose  him- 
self from  the  ties  which  bind  him  to  virtue  is  like 
one  who  loosens  the  cord  which  holds  him  to  his 
party  and  his  guide  on  the  perilous  ascent  of  the 
Matterhorn  ;  he  slips  and  with  terrible  velocity 
falls  into  the  dreadful  chasm. 

Our  intellectual  habits  also  affect  our  ideals ; 
careless  and  blurred  perceptions,  imperfect  and  ill- 
defined  memory,  dull  and  fitful  imagination,  unde- 
veloped taste,  all  these  deform  and  dwarf  our  moral 
ideals.  The  communion  of  the  soul  with  all  that 
is  spiritual  is  prevented  by  mental  inactivity. 

"  How  pure  at  heart  and  sound  in  head, 
With  what  divine  affections  bold, 
Should  be  the  man  whose  thought  would  hold 
An  hour's  communion  with  the  dead ! 

In  vain  shalt  thou  or  any  call 

The  spirits  from  their  golden  day, 
Except  like  them,  thou  too  canst  say : 

'  My  spirit  is  at  peace  with  all.' 

They  haunt  the  silence  of  the  breast, 

Imiginations  calm  and  fair, 

The  memory  like  a  cloudless  air, 
The  conscience  as  a  sea  at  rest." 


68        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

So  let  us  remember  to  train  the  minds  of  the 
children  in  clear  and  comprehensive  perception, 
accurate  and  complete  memory,  definite  expres- 
sion, vivid  imagination,  in  order  to  lift,  expand, 
and  vivify  their  spiritual  ideals ;  we  must  show 
them  what  beauty  and  harmony  are,  by  clear 
observation  of  their  representation  in  nature  and 
human  action ;  they  will  then  remember  more 
definitely  and  compare  more  justly,  so  as  to 
deduce  more  clearly  abstract  law  and  order,  truth 
and  justice,  love  and  purity,  and  so  build  up  living 
conceptions  of  the  Personality  which  they  strive 
towards.  In  the  moral  and  spiritual  universe,  we 
breathe  the  atmosphere  of  these  great  ideals,  and 
grow  into  them  unconsciously,  as  the  child  grows. 

Yet,  again,  by  the  discipline  of  retribution,  by 
the  experience  of  pain  as  a  natural  penalty,  we 
are  sometimes  driven  back  to  high  ideals  from 
which  we  have  strayed ;  we  are  forced  to  rein- 
state them  as  an  incentive  to  duty ;  then  the  will 
is  aroused  to  active  participation  in  the  struggle. 
The  conscious  will  is  the  final  agent  in  the  direc- 
tion of  soul-development  and  growth.  Even  when 
all  other  help  and  chastisements  have  failed,  where 
the  environment  seems  all  degrading,  where  hab- 
its of  conduct  have  been  inevitably  opposed  to 
moral  elevation,  nature,  with  kind  compulsion 
under  seeming  cruelty,  continually  strengthens 
the  ideal  of  law  by  heavy  retribution  ;  till,  through 


EDUCATION  OF  THE  SOUL  69 

struggle  and  antagonism,  the  will  becomes  capable 
of  exercising  an  energy  equal  to  the  conquest  of 
all  these  untoward  moral  influences,  and  sets  the 
face  of  the  hero  straight  forward  and  his  steps 
upward  and  onward  to  give  him  the  most  tri- 
umphant soul-progress,  and  enable  him  to  outstrip 
all  the  apparent  vantage  of  happier  influences. 

J  came  out  of  a  school  of  ragged  little  urchins 
as  they  were  making  their  way  through  the  slush 
and  mire  of  the  narrow  alley  that  led  to  the  street. 
A  boy  of  ten  carried  on  his  back  his  little  brother 
from  the  kindergarten  ;  he  reached  a  broad  stone 
at  the  entrance  of  the  alley,  running  a  gantlet  of 
snow-balls  and  mischievous  attacks  to  pull  his 
brother  from  his  back,  then  he  set  the  little  fel- 
low, whose  stolid  countenance  showed  no  fear  or 
doubt,  upon  the  stone,  and  turned  about  with 
undismayed  front  to  his  foes.  He  vanquished 
one  after  another  with  stout  heart,  and  repeatedly 
resumed  the  attempt  to  carry  his  little  brother  off 
the  field ;  I  watched  him,  victor  in  the  sixth  con- 
test, at  last  shoulder  his  trusting  burden  and  dart 
across  the  crowded  street  with  him,  all  alert  to 
avoid  the  cars  and  heavy  teams.  I  could  but 
admire  his  determined  pluck  and  persistence  as 
well  as  his  stout  imperturbability  of  aspect  under 
all  these  difficulties.  As  I  stepped  from  my  car 
to  reach  my  home,  I  met  a  very  different  crowd 
of  school-children.  I  watched  one  of  them  about 


70       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

the  size  of  my  little  hero,  but  he  was  muffled  as  if 
for  the  Arctic  regions  ;  he  was  led  by  a  maid,  and 
looked  timid  and  babyish.  After  all,  I  thought, 
the  compensations  of  life  are  a  tolerably  good  bal- 
ance of  opportunities  ;  this  rich  boy  might  almost 
envy  the  poor  boy  his  chances  of  growth,  physi- 
cal as  well  as  moral.  How  much  more  it  is  to 
a  boy  to  have  a  well-trained  will  and  a  habit  of 
fearless  and  prompt  action,  a  steady  power  of 
resistance,  and  an  unflinching  courage  and  resolu- 
tion, than  to  have  fine  clothes,  a  luxurious  home 
or,  perhaps,  even  a  life  full  of  love  and  innocence 
without  them ! 

We  must  feed  the  child's  soul,  also,  with  the 
ideals  expressed  by  those  of  clear  moral  vision, 
the  spiritual  leaders  of  the  race,  they  who  show  a 
supreme  genius  for  righteousness  and  the  most 
perfect  fealty  to  truth  ;  the  martyrs,  the  seers,  the 
teachers,  the  preachers,  of  humanity,  — how  their 
utterances,  their  lives,  and  their  death-scenes  lift 
our  ideals,  and  inspire  us  to  strive  for  all  divine 
possibilities  of  humanity  !  The  embodiment  of 
our  highest  conception  of  character  in  a  great 
magnetic  human  personality  is  the  most  powerful 
influence  for  good  which  comes  from  our  earthly 
surroundings.  A  great  and  true  soul  is  the  very 
bread  of  life  to  us ;  its  possessor  transcends  all 
our  ideals  in  his  own  life,  and  has  the  communicat- 
ing force  of  all  this  complex  union ;  he  is  the  way 


EDUCATION  OF  THE  SOUL  Jl 

the  truth  and  the  life  to  weaker  and  lower  spirit- 
ual natures.  We  construct  from  him  the  way  to 
God,  and  to  the  extent  of  his  likeness  to  God  we 
see  God. 

Yes,  we  offer  ourselves  to  the  child  as  a  pattern 
for  his  ideals  ;  we  know  that  we  must  train  him  in 
the  spiritual  life  by  the  same  laws  that  operate  in 
his  natural  life.  Whatever  he  thinks  and  feels  and 
does,  that  he  will  continually  become.  There  is 
no  other  rule  of  growth  than  the  assimilation  of 
nourishment  and  the  exercise  of  function. 

This  throws  upon  the  teacher  a  heavy  responsi- 
bility, but  an  immense  inspiration  ;  it  calls  him  to 
unceasing  vigilance  and  spotless  behavior ;  it  keeps 
the  heavens  open  above  him,  and  urges  him  to 
glorious  effort. 

"  Stay  not  for  rest  though  dreams  be  sweet, 
Start  up  and  ply  your  heavenward  feet ; 
Is  not  God's  oath  upon  your  head 
Ne'er  to  sink  back  on  slothful  bed, 
Never  again  your  loins  untie, 
Nor  let  your  torches  droop  and  die, 
Till  when  the  shadows  thickest  fall 
Ye  hear  your  Master's  midnight  call  ?  " 


CHARACTER  AS  AN   OBJECT  OF 
SCHOOL   EDUCATION 


ADDRESS  BEFORE  THE  MASSACHUSETTS  TEACH- 
ERS' ASSOCIATION,  NOV.  26,  1887. 


FELLOW  TEACHERS,  —  I  am  glad  to  speak  to  you 
to-day,  because  I  am  burdened  with  my  message 
to  you,  because  I  want  to  feel  your  responsive 
sympathy  and  the  inspiration  of  your  courage,  as 
well  as  the  wisdom  of  your  experience.  I  ask  you 
to  look  at  this  great  subject  of  the  school  educa- 
tion of  to-day;  the  school  education  of  this  city  and 
this  State,  nay,  of  this  whole  country,  in  the  light 
of  its  actual  conditions, —  conditions  unparalleled  in 
history, — to  look  at  it  penetratively,  inclusively, 
comprehensively,  as  to  the  demands  of  the  situa- 
tion, the  times,  the  State ;  as  to  the  demands  of  our 
national  security,  of  civilization,  of  humanity,  and 
the  progressive  spirit  of  the  age,  —  and  tell  me 
whether  character  is  to  be  reckoned  among  its 
objects,  and  where  in  the  scale  of  importance  it  is 
to  be  placed. 

72 


CHARACTER   AND  SCHOOL  EDUCATION      73 

What  is  the  situation  of  the  schools  to-day  as  to 
their  material?  Think  of  the  question,  and  apply 
it  fairly  and  broadly  to  the  existing  conditions  of 
our  population.  If  you  should  spend  six  months, 
as  I  have  but  now  done  for  the  first  time,  in  going 
from  school  to  school  in  this  city,  you  would,  I 
venture  to  say,  be  almost  overwhelmed  with  the 
gravity  of  the  question  I  have  propounded,  — 
overwhelmed  with  the  complications  of  the  situa- 
tion, the  complexity  of  the  material.  Go  into  one 
school,  for  example,  and  look  into  the  yards  at 
recess,  stand  in  the  main  hall  as  the  children  troop 
in  from  recess  to  disperse  to  their  several  rooms. 
What  a  seething  mass  of  humanity  is  before 
us  !  Children  of  every  nationality,  of  every  social 
grade,  of  every  form  of  political  and  religious  in- 
heritance, of  every  possibility  of  development, 
gathered  within  one  cordon  of  equal  rights  and 
privileges,  of  equal  restrictions  and  limitations. 
As  I  have  watched  them,  I  have  seen  in  them  the 
agitated  convolutions  of  a  nation's  brain,  or  the 
arterial  circulation  of  a  nation's  heart,  for  that  they 
are  really  to  be  in  a  few  years.  The  problem 
which  confronts  us  is  unprecedented.  What  sort 
of  training  shall  be  brought  to  bear  on  so  many 
diverse  and  alien  elements,  to  unify,  to  integrate, 
to  harmonize  them  sufficiently  to  handle  them  as 
one  school  ?  We  might  hear  in  this  noisy  tumult 
as  many  native  tongues  as  modern  society  pro- 


74        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

duces ;  see  as  many  race  types  as  are  found  on 
the  globe  ;  and  as  they  pass  on  in  the  procession, 
we  see  an  epitome  of  that  vast  phenomenal  migra- 
tion which  is  pouring  from  the  shores  of  the  Old 
World  over  our  parallels  from  sea  to  sea,  filling 
our  valleys,  occupying  our  towns,  ruling  our  cities, 
overflowing  our  original  population  with  the  most 
heterogeneous  and  disintegrating  accumulation  of 
forces  and  elements  that  were  ever  brought  to- 
gether in  history. 

But  stand  with  me,  for  a  while,  in  this  grammar- 
school  corridor,  and  observe  this  file  of  seven  or 
eight  hundred,  perchance  a  thousand,  boys  and 
girls,  as  they  pass  up  the  stairways  to  their  school- 
rooms; and  think  of  the  increasing  multiplication 
of  this  host,  not  less  than  three  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  in  your  Massachusetts  schools  to-day,  and 
the  progression  of  numbers  is  a  geometrical  one. 
They  are  coming  in  to  receive  your  training, 
according  to  your  theory  of  what  it  ought  to  be, — 
how  broad  or  how  narrow,  how  fundamental  or 
how  superficial,  how  limited  or  how  far-reaching, — 
as  your  ideal  of  school  education  shall  shape  it. 
They  are  coming  into  their  places  for  the  hour  or 
the  day  ?  No ;  for  the  days  and  months  and  years 
of  their  growing-time,  for  what  is  potentially  their 
lifetime.  Remember,  adapt  your  ideal  to  this 
condition  of  comparative  duration,  of  comparative 
importance  as  the  seed-time  of  life.  They  are  com- 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION      75 

ing  in  for  the  most  part  in  these  grades  to  their 
only  opportunity  for  right  development,  from 
homes,  or  from  no  homes,  or  from  worse  than 
none  ;  they  are  trooping  in  from  pernicious  compan- 
ionships, from  ignorant  and  lawless  surroundings, 
from  the  infection  of  the  street,  to  catch  the  forma- 
tive intention  of  our  institutions,  to  receive  the 
touch  of  our  civilization,  to  be  led  on  to  the  thresh- 
old of  participation  in  our  family  and  national 
life.  They  are  coming  into  the  circle  of  your  per- 
sonal guardianship,  as  their  fathers  •  and  mothers 
have  come  into  this  free  land,  because  they  have 
been  invited  and  encouraged  in  every  way,  because 
they  have  been  compelled  into  our  schools,  and  we 
have  undertaken  to  do  our  best  for  them  ;  we  have 
dared  to  offer  to  build  them  into  the  State  ;  we 
have  had  the  courage  and  the  faith  to  put  cunning 
tools  into  their  hands,  and  to  show  them  how  to 
use  them  ;  we  have  proposed  to  endow  them  with 
the  matriculation  of  our  intellectual  heritage,  of 
our  grand  estate  of  intellectual  possibilities,  that 
they  may  obtain  skill  and  power,  perhaps  political 
or  educational  dominance,  among  us.  In  this 
crowd  are  our  own  children  of  Plymouth  Rock 
traditions.  They  are  all  together,  one  body,  for 
coincident  training  and  education. 

Do  we  know  what  we  are  doing?  Have  we  such 
unquenchable  faith  in  the  leaven  of  our  inherit- 
ance? Will  the  organic  qualities  of  our  national 


76       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

institutions  reach  so  far,  permeate  so  vast  a  con- 
glomeration, inoculate  so  infinite  a  number  of 
personalities  with  the  virus  of  our  original  inci- 
siveness  of  conscience,  of  our  fathers'  lofty  ideals 
of  action  ? 

We  have  a  grand  inheritance  of  character,  thank 
God  !  As  the  Carboniferous  Age  packed  the  solid 
earth  with  its  plant-life,  and  stored  up  in  this  great 
continent  resources  of  material  heat  and  light  suf- 
ficing for  all  and  forever,  though  its  myriad  acres 
should  become  so  many  homesteads  for  the  repre- 
sentation of  every  town  and  village  in  the  whole 
world,  —  so  Puritanism  stored  up  its  mines  of  solid 
integrity,  purity,  and  faith  for  the  spiritual  warmth 
and  light  of  all  the  souls  that  shall  flock  to  its  bor- 
ders :  an  exhaustless  supply  equal  to  the  infinite 
demand !  But  suppose  those  mines  are  not  worked, 
those  accumulated  moral  forces  not  applied,  the 
talent  left  buried  and  hid  in  the  earth,  the  factories 
of  our  manhood  and  womahood  not  supplied  with 
this  fuel,  what  then  ?  Character  left  out  of  our 
schools,  our  educative  organizations,  our  universi- 
ties ? 

Do  we  not  see,  then,  that  our  conditions  of  mate- 
rial for  school  education  are  phenomenal  ?  that  the 
times  are  exigent  in  their  demand  ?  that  we  have 
a  tide  to  sway  which  will  tax  all  our  protective  and 
directive  forces  ?  that  we  cannot  afford  to  leave 
out  of  primary,  grammar,  or  high  school  courses 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL  EDUCATION      77 

the  education  of  that  supreme  controlling  power, 
the  individual  will  and  conscience  ?  that  we  must 
have  a  place  in  our  scheme  for  the  evolution  of 
soul  as  the  inclusive  germ  of  right  manhood  and 
womanhood  ? 

This  great  influx  of  various  life  is  a  grand 
opportunity  to  prove  the  virtue  of  our  transcendent 
principles  of  national  unity  and  growth.  In  the 
seething  caldron  of  our  schools,  as  well  as  of  our 
civic  population,  we  must  preserve  the  regulative, 
the  unifying,  the  alchemizing,  element  of  our  rela- 
tions to  eternal  truth  ;  if  we  so  materialize  our 
educative  plans  as  to  leave  out  the  soul,  we  are  in 
the  path  of  disintegration  and  destruction  as  a 
nation,  a  state,  or  a  school-system.  The  schools 
must  deal  with  the  immortal  part,  the  essential 
element  of  growth  of  these  seventeen  million  chil- 
dren within  our  schoolrooms.  Is  it  not  an  over- 
whelming problem  which  is  before  us  ?  How  to 
humanize,  how  to  civilize,  how  to  nationalize,  may 
I  not  say  how  to  spiritualize,  them  as  they  come 
into  our  ranks  ?  I  will  not  gauge  my  proposition 
to  any  limiting  relationships  or  titles  of  religious 
creed  or  sect,  —  not  to  Puritanism,  not  to  Protest- 
antism, not  to  Roman  Catholicism,  not  to  Juda- 
ism, neither  to  Buddhism,  nor  Agnosticism.  I 
gladly  leave  all  theology  to  the  churches  ;  I  will 
choose  the  word,  if  I  can  find  it,  that  will  stand 
for  the  most  liberal  education  of  the  whole  man, 


78        THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

with  the  soul  as  the  supreme  factor  of  that  man- 
hood. How  can  you  leave  it  out  ?  How  dare  you 
ignore  it  ?  How  can  we  train  the  child,  as  we  have 
been  trying  to  do  —  all  but  his  soul  ?  It  seems  to 
me  the  rcdnctio  ad absurdum  of  educational  policy. 
I  say  it  would  be  a  splendid  achievement  to  deal 
successfully  with  the  problem  of  absorbing  into 
our  national  life  all  these  diverse  and  fertilizing 
currents  which  immigration  provides  at  such  an 
unexampled  pace.  If  we  can  but  preserve  our 
assimilative  power  as  a  civilized  and  Christianized 
people,  how  rich  and  complex  our  national  life 
may  become !  It  is  easy  to  see  what  a  fine  fruit 
all  this  foreign  graft  might  give  us.  I  have  no 
doubt  that  we  have  much  to  be  grateful  for  in  the 
germs  now  being  wrought  into  our  body  politic  — 
yes,  even  into  our  schools  —  here  in  Massachu- 
setts. How  narrow  and  stilted  and  exclusive  the 
hereditary  Puritan  type  is  capable  of  becoming 
without  interference,  Heaven  preserve  me  from 
surmising !  I  am  glad  the  warm  heart,  the  ample 
generosity,  the  kindly  courtesy,  the  ardent  patriot- 
ism, of  the  Irish  blood  is  kindling  the  cooling  stra- 
tum of  New  England  life  to  something  of  its 
ancient  fervor.  I  welcome  the  various  flavors 
that  are  pouring  into  this  seething  caldron  of 
which  we  have  spoken.  The  broth  will  be  all  the 
more  spicy  and  nutritious  when  it  is  thoroughly 
boiled  down  ;  but  we  teachers  are  looking  down 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION      79 

into  the  bubbling  vortex,  with  the  responsibility 
of  producing  therefrom  a  savory  and  healthful 
sustenance  for  future  generations.  The  harmoniz- 
ing, the  nationalizing,  of  all  these  foreign  elements 
seems  to  be  an  immediate  and  paramount  duty. 
I  believe  that  in  our  schools,  as  in  our  cities  and 
in  our  whole  land,  we  should  constantly  strive  to 
forget  the  various  nationalities  represented  by  the 
newer  and  changing  population,  and  nationalize 
all  at  once  as  Americans,  the  sooner  the  better : 
no  Irish,  no  Italians,  no  Germans,  no  French, 
only  Americans,  not  even  "  Irish  Americans," 
or  "the  foreign  element;"  but  as  soon  as  these 
whom  we  have  so  cordially  invited  among  us  are 
domiciled  as  families,  as  soon  as  their  children 
are  in  our  schools,  they,  children  and  all,  as  well 
as  we  and  our  children,  are  Americans.  They,  as 
we,  have  one  flag  to  fight  for,  one  country,  and 
one  alone,  one  title  and  one  inheritance;  and 
should  be  loyal  to  one  citizenship  only. 

We  have  asked  them  and  they  have  come,  not 
to  be  false  to  their  past,  but,  having  chosen  their 
future,  to  be  true  to  the  supreme  fealty  they 
have  adopted ;  to  call  themselves  above  all  Ameri- 
cans, and  to  stand  by  the  law  and  order  of  the 
country  into  whose  borders  they  have  hastened  in 
presumable  good  faith  and  honesty. 

Produce  in  our  schools  the  sentiment  of  na- 
tional unification,  of  an  integral  connection  with 


80        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

American  institutions,  and  ideas  of  patriotic  pride 
in  American  homes,  American  schools,  the  Amer- 
ican honor,  and  the  American  ideal  of  loyal  and 
orderly  free  government.  Do  you  doubt  whether 
this  be  a  part  of  your  duty?  As  well  doubt  this 
as  any  other  conception  of  your  duty  lying  within 
the  realm  of  the  sentiments  and  emotions.  But 
if,  as  I  suppose  you  will  all  concede,  the  schools 
are  the  safeguards  and  training-ground  of  our 
national  and  civil  recruiting  body,  then  the  teach- 
ers are  at  work  preparing  this  body  corporate  for 
service  which  shall  be  preservative  and  strength- 
ening, rather  than  weakening  and  destructive,  to 
the  State.  How  can  they  do  this  without  arous- 
ing the  affections,  stimulating  the  loyalty,  exalt- 
ing the  ambitions,  of  every  recruit  ?  They  must 
work  upon  the  soul  of  every  child,  for  these  are 
soul-functions.  Are  they  less  important  to  the 
State  than  the  ability  of  each  recruit  to  read,  write, 
and  reckon  ?  Will  they  serve  the  State  less  than 
mere  intellectual  acquisitions  ?  Do  you  not  see 
that  the  school  as  an  arm  of  the  State  must  work 
supremely  upon  the  activities  of  the  soul  ?  If 
the  law  of  the  land  lead  the  children  into  the 
exercise  of  intellectual  and  mechanical  power 
alone,  it  is  preparing,  perhaps,  the  dynamite  bomb, 
or  the  riotous  mob,  or  the  cancerous  corruption, 
which  shall  recoil  upon  itself  within  a  decade  or 
two. 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL  EDUCATION      8 1 

Perhaps  you  may  say,  "  I  agree  that  good  morals 
should  be  inculcated  in  school,  right  conduct 
should  be  demanded,  but  why  speak  of  character  ? 
That  belongs  to  the  family  and  the  church  as  an 
educational  responsibility."  Did  the  existing  con- 
ditions of  our  home  and  church  work  suffice  for 
this,  I  would  not  so  emphasize  the  part  of  the 
school  in  it,  but  who  will  claim  that  this  is  done  ? 
In  fact,  the  great  mass  of  public-school  population 
in  our  large  cities  derives  no  benefit  from  the  edu- 
cative opportunities  of  the  family  or  the  church. 
Will  any  one  deny  that  ?  Besides,  if  the  schools 
hold  the  children  in  their  embrace  during  almost 
their  entire  waking  hours,  they  so  thoroughly 
grasp  the  balance  of  opportunity,  that  home  and 
church  are  of  little  avail  against  them.  If,  in  lieu 
of  using  this  opportunity  for  character,  it  is  found 
to  be  neglected,  there  is  no  resource  for  church  or 
family  but  to  wrest  the  children  from  the  hands 
of  the  State,  and  place  them  in  home  or  church 
schools  ;  and  if  this  has  been  largely  done,  what 
wonder,  or  whose  the  blame  ? 

I  lay  the  main  stress  of  my  plea  for  character 
education  upon  the  needs  of  the  primary  and  gram- 
mar schools,  because  they  are  greatest,  both  as 
respects  time  and  material,  and  there  rests  the  bur- 
den of  my  appeal ;  but  I  believe  the  high  schools  are 
not  exempt  from  responsibility.  There  comes  a  time 
when  the  young  soul,  emerging  from  the  careless- 


82        THR  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ness  of  childhood,  awakes  to  a  sudden  consciousness 
of  its  relations  to  itself,  to  the  universe,  and  to 
immortal  issues.  If  the  teacher  is  without  power 
to  guide  in  such  a  crisis,  without  power  to  awaken 
and  healthfully  direct  the  sense  of  responsibility 
for  character,  without  the  soul-life  in  himself  which 
makes  him  heart-wise  and  soul-helpful,  he  is  terri- 
bly out  of  place,  and  has  mistaken  his  vocation, 
though  he  be  a  master  of  all  literature,  science,  and 
art.  I  have  rejoiced  to  hear  Dr.  Eliot  of  the 
School  Board,  on  more  than  one  occasion,  recog- 
nize and  emphasize  most  earnestly  this  crown- 
ing responsibility  for  the  divine  relationships  of 
every  soul  within  the  moulding  grasp  of  the  in- 
stitution, or  about  being  graduated  from  the  Alma 
Mater. 

Perhaps  the  teachers  will  say  that  the  rules  of 
the  school  regulate  conduct ;  certainly  they  do,  in 
a  very  narrow  sense.  Conduct  is  a  word  which 
admits  of  many  applications.  The  rules  of  the 
school  are  for  the  government  of  conduct  only  as 
it  relates  to  school  relations  and  duties ;  so  I  con- 
ceive their  application.  I  remember  a  short  inter- 
view I  had  with  the  master  of  a  school,  in  regard 
to  one  of  his  pupils.  "  How  does  it  happen,"  I 
said  to  him,  "  that  his  mark  for  deportment  is  so 
low  ?  Is  he  a  bad  boy  ? "  —  "  Oh,  no,"  was  the  reply  ; 
"  he  is  a  very  good  boy,  but  his  conscience  hasn't 
developed  in  the  direction  of  his  school  duties." 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION      83 

I  admired  the  ready  expedient,  the  tact,  and  the 
skill  of  phraseology  exhibited  in  this  reply,  but  I 
perceived  that  the  marks  for  school  conduct  had 
no  reference  to  character.  Is  it  not  so  in  all  our 
schools  ?  Conduct  does  not  there  imply  anything 
beyond  outward  conformity  to  the  regulations 
of  the  schoolroom,  and  a  trivial  offence  of  posture 
or  occupation  is  visited  with  sterner  retribution  than 
a  serious  offence  against  good  morals.  I  think  in 
the  very  school  of  which  I  speak,  some  boys  who 
stood  high  on  the  roll  of  school  conduct  were  well 
known  to  have  habits  of  open  and  heinous  vice. 
I  heard  one,  who  had  excellent  opportunity  for 
knowing,  say  of  a  grammar  master,  not  a  hun- 
dred miles  away,  "  A  boy  can  lie  and  steal  and  use 
profane  language  without  any  notice  from  him,  but 
if  he  catches  a  boy  with  a  piece  of  chewing-gum 
in  his  mouth,  he  gives  him  an  awful  thrashing." 
So  have  I  seen  constantly,  as  I  pass  from  school- 
room to  schoolroom,  an  oppressive  attention  to 
the  "mint,  anise  and  cummin,"  to  the  slightest 
detail  of  external  order,  while  the  weightier  intel- 
lectual matters,  enthusiastic  attention,  a  knowledge 
of  the  lesson,  an  effort  to  understand,  were  all 
postponed  and  constantly  hindered  and  interrupted 
by  the  teacher's  narrow  ideal  of  conduct.  When 
will  the  teachers  learn  that  the  mind  of  the  child 
and  the  soul  of  the  child  grow  from  within  outward, 
like  a  plant ;  that  conduct  is  the  outcome  of  char- 


84        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

acter,  that  external  behavior  is  the  expression  of 
the  inward  spirit,  that  inspiration  is  the  finest  reg- 
ulator of  conduct,  and  that  external  order  can  be 
secured  effectually  only  through  the  absorbed 
attention  which  is  spontaneous  under  the  inspira- 
tion of  the  work  or  the  teacher,  or  through  the 
controlling  power  of  affectionate  loyalty  to  the 
interests  of  the  school  ?  I  passed  a  half-hour  in  a 
class-room  at  one  of  our  evening  schools  lately  ; 
and  although  the  class  was  more  or  less  restless 
before  the  teacher  took  up  the  lesson,  yet,  as  soon 
as  he  did,  their  eager  interest  produced  an  imme- 
diate hush,  and  the  perfect  quiet  which  grew  spon- 
taneously out  of  the  master's  absorbed  command 
of  his  subject  and  the  absorbed  attention  of  the 
class,  was  a  thorough  illustration  of  the  superiority 
of  inspiration  to  criticism,  as  a  corrective  of  out- 
ward disorder.  So  I  discern  that  even  in  matters 
of  school  conduct  alone,  the  effectual  method  is 
the  arousing  into  activity  of  the  soul-functions. 
You  cannot  ignore  the  soul  in  school  education. 
But  some  will  say,  the  school  is  for  intellectual 
development.  That  sounds  rather  narrow  in  these 
days  of  enthusiasm  in  the  direction  of  manual 
training.  The  body,  as  the  tool  and  home  and 
sub-partner  of  the  mind,  is  found  to  be  an  essen- 
tial factor  in  the  education  of  the  child.  What ! 
the  body  and  the  mind,  but  not  the  soul  ?  The 
senses,  the  hands,  all  the  organs  of  outward  per- 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION      85 

ception  and  expression,  the  reason,  the  imagina- 
tion, the  taste  even,  —  all  these  avenues  and 
means  to  a  great  end  brought  into  exercise  ;  and 
the  consummation,  the  grand  purpose,  the  raison 
d'etre,  forgotten,  ignored,  neglected  ?  the  soul- 
functions  and  soul-development  not  even  hinted 
at  in  your  school  courses  ?  Oh  !  one  may  go  starv- 
ing through  the  plodding  recitations ;  not  a  hint  of 
the  unseen  realities,  the  unciphered  verities,  the 
grand  background  of  all  human  activities  and  aims, 
character!  nothing  of  that  in  the  text-books,  no 
ideals  to  feed  the  soul  of  the  child  upon,  no  stirring 
of  love  and  reverence  and  fidelity,  no  appeal  to  the 
inward  life  which  should  be  at  the  root  of  all  this 
intellectual  growth.  The  barren,  barren  tree  of 
our  curriculum  on  which  no  immortal  fruit  can 
ripen  !  let  its  deciduous  verdure  fall  away  each 
year,  until  some  perennial  sap  shall  spring  from 
a  more  vital  and  radical  source  to  make  the  gardens 
of  child-culture  bloom  as  God  meant  they  should. 
Perhaps  some  will  ask,  what  do  you  mean  by 
arousing  the  soul-activities  ?  How  shall  we  do 
this  by  our  school  exercises  without  interfering 
with  liberty  of  conscience  and  striking  at  the 
principle  of  our  free  institutions.  That  seems 
about  as  pertinent  to  me  as  a  question  how  one 
can  teach  physics  without  infringing  on  some 
machine-patent.  Are  there  not  grand  ideals  which 
underlie  every  system  of  religious  belief?  Are 


86       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

there  not  affections  universally  acknowledged  to 
be  supreme  ?  Is  there  not  an  unalterable  law  of 
right  in  the  moral  world,  and  unvarying  moral  dis- 
tinctions ?  Is  there  anything  sectarian  in  the  idea 
of  an  ever-present  creative  love  and  power  on 
which  all  creatures  depend,  and  to  which  they  owe 
their  highest  fealty  ?  Is  there  anything  that 
belongs  exclusively  to  Jew  or  to  Greek,  to  Latin 
or  to  Saxon,  in  the  obligation  to  choose  right 
rather  than  wrong,  to  exercise  love  instead  of  hate, 
to  worship  Him  in  whom  we  live  and  move  and 
have  our  being,  to  call  Him  our  Father,  and  to  feel 
toward  Him  as  children  ?  Is  it  more  or  less  Ma- 
hommedan  than  Jewish,  or  than  Christian,  or  than 
Pagan  philosophy,  to  teach  that  the  things  which 
are  not  seen  are  eternal,  and  that  eternal  truth  is 
within  and  behind  all  outward  forms  and  processes  ? 
I  recall  the  beautiful  descriptions  of  the  schools  of 
Pythagoras,  where  soul-training  was  the  constant 
and  pronounced  method  ;  the  white-robed  ranks, 
engaged  in  hymns  of  praise  with  every  morning 
and  evening  sacrifice,  and  all  the  Greek  excellence 
of  achievements  devoted  to  the  deities, — their 
athletic,  intellectual,  and  spiritual  exercises  only  a 
form  of  worship.  When  shall  we  be  able  to  build 
up  character  on  the  basis  of  this  recognition  of 
what  is  real  and  fundamental  ?  There  is  not  a 
child  in  our  schools,  however  dirty,  stupid,  brutish, 
or  vicious,  who  is  not  sensitive  to  such  an  inspira- 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION       8/ 

tion,  and  who  will  not  respond  to  its  appeal  sooner 
or  later.  What  glorious  opportunities  we  have  to 
make  that  appeal !  The  returning  blessings  of 
each  new  day,  as  they  fall  upon  us  from  an  unseen 
hand,  are  waiting  for  our  appreciation  and  thankful 
attention ;  the  close  relations  of  school  which  in- 
volve the  affections  and  stimulate  the  emotions  so 
constantly,  open  the  door  for  the  expression  of  the 
soul.  The  blind  cannot  lead  the  blind,  the  power 
of  inspiration  is  the  overflow  of  inspiration.  And 
how  one  may  go  thirsting  through  the  desert  of 
the  natural  science  and  geography  work  in  many  of 
the  schools  ;  and  in  all  of  them  be  suddenly  brought 
to  the  wall  just  as  the  glory  was  about  to  burst 
through  the  works  of  the  Lord,  while  the  eyes  of 
the  children  are  looking  and  waiting  in  vain.  I 
wish  I  could  convey  to  you  the  sense  of  mockery 
and  disappointment  that  comes  over  me  as  one 
life-structure  after  another  is  investigated  in  a 
class-room  ;  all  its  wonders  catalogued  and  its  ana- 
tomy recited  to  every  detail,  and  then,  —  a  great 
blank  where  all  the  feast  lay  spread,  the  curtain 
dropped,  and  the  multitude  sent  away  empty  !  Of 
what  account  is  the  dissection  of  the  oyster  and 
the  clam,  the  sponge  and  the  star-fish  ?  It  is  all 
so  much  rubbish,  and  a  valley  of  dry  bones,  where 
no  one  has  been  allowed  to  touch  the  thread  of 
inspiration  running  through  all  its  labyrinth  of 
structure  and  type  :  the  design,  the  adapation, 


88        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

the  providence,  and  the  immanence  of  creative  love 
and  care:  God  near  at  hand,  in  the  leaf,  in  the 
rock,  in  the  earth-forces  and  earth-productions,  in 
every  image  and  expression  of  life  :  God  in  the 
heart-beat,  in  the  pulse,  saying  each  instant,  "  My 
child ; "  in  the  breath  of  life,  whether  in  the  mollusk 
or  the  mammal,  the  creative  thought  in  its  ever- 
evolving  processes  and  transmutations,  for  the  child 
to  see,  to  trace,  and  to  feel,  until  his  soul  responds 
in  faith  and  affection,  in  worship  and  in  obedience. 
I  declare  that-  there  is  no  other  way  to  reach  con- 
duct legitimately  or  permanently  or  thoroughly,  but 
through  character  as  an  outgrowth  of  soul-activity. 
The  human  being,  I  reiterate,  is  like  a  plant  in  its 
methods  of  growth,  not  like  a  clod  which  rolls  amid 
the  adhesive  clay  and  gathers  accretions  :  our  out- 
ward forms  of  action  are  moulded  by  our  inward 
thoughts  and  feelings. 

Some  teachers  admit  that  character  is  the  inclu- 
sive aim  of  education,  but  propose  to  attain  it 
through  the  accretion  of  good  habits,  through  the 
discipline  of  the  will,  through  a  wholesome  sense 
of  the  natural  penalties  of  transgression  of  the  moral 
law.  These,  indeed,  are  well  and  necessary,  but 
they  do  not  go  to  the  core.  They,  too,  are  in  a 
degree  external ;  they  do  not  involve  the  soul- 
activities  so  much  as  they  do  the  judgment  and 
reason  and  the  purely  intellectual  power  of  concen- 
trated attention.  Even  as  a  physiological  process 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION       89 

the  conscious-  will  comes  into  play  only  in  those 
channels  of  vibration  which  the  unconscious  will 
has  opened ;  when  awakened  aggressively  it  usually 
comes  to  a  point  of  equilibrium  with  opposing 
vibrations,  a  condition  which  precludes  activity  in 
any  direction  ;  the  channels  of  brain  vibration  are 
clogged  with  opposing  currents,  until  some  over- 
powering wave  of  absorbed  emotion  clears  the  way 
for  the  action  of  the  unconscious  will,  and  the  work 
is  accomplished  by  inspiration  which  could  not  be 
even  begun  by  resolve.  Tell  your  pupils  twenty 
times  to  stand  erect,  to  march  in  exact  step,  to 
keep  in  line,  to  be  quiet  as  they  file  up  and  down, 
and  with  the  best  intention  in  the  world  there 
will  be  more  or  less  disorder  and  irregularity  and 
undue  noise  ;  but  strike  the  piano  or  the  drum,  and 
attune  their  muscles  to  rhythm  and  harmony, 
absorb  their  attention,  harmonize  their  movements 
unconsciously,  and  perfection  of  detail  is  at  once 
accomplished. 

Or  suppose  a  pupil  listlessly  turning  over  the 
leaves  of  his  book,  sitting  slouchingly  and  pas- 
sively at  his  desk  :  you  know  that  to  try  to  arouse 
his  will  is  not  so  effectual  an  instigation  to  real 
study  as  some  strong  motive  to  ambition,  some 
sudden  accession  of  real  interest  in  his  subject,  or 
some  arousing  of  his  whole  nature  by  an  absorbing 
idea.  This  is  one  of  the  lessons  I  wish  the  teachers 
could  learn  :  How  ineffectual  is  their  endless  fault- 


90       THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

finding  and  trivial  correction  to  secure  good  order ; 
how  paralyzing  their  nervous  chatter  or  impatient 
scolding  becomes  to  the  real  power  of  the  pupils 
for  doing  what  is  urged  upon  them  ;  how  much 
more  to  the  purpose  is  one  wave  of  enthusiastic 
interest  than  a  thousand  pattering  drops  of  expos- 
tulation and  reprimand  !  And  I  wish,  also,  that  we 
could  all  observe  how  futile  is  most  of  our  en- 
deavor to  arouse  the  sense  of  duty  without  having 
first  aroused  the  affections,  in  either  their  human 
or  divine  relations.  Habits  have  their  accumulative 
power,  but  outward  habit  is  as  nothing  before 
inward  habit ;  it  is  the  habit  of  thought,  of  feeling, 
the  habit  of  desire  and  affection,  that  overcomes 
at  last  and  makes  the  man  what  he  is. 

Do  we  trust  to  the  silent  and  unexpressed  influ- 
ence of  the  scientist  to  produce  scientists  ?  or 
does  the  man  who  knows  any  matter  of  scholarship 
trust  to  that  knowledge  to  produce  scholars,  with- 
out active  effort  to  stimulate  their  desire  for 
knowledge  ? 

Now,  again,  I  hear  some  say,  that  the  high  char- 
acter of  the  teacher,  the  models  of  outward  con- 
duct in  the  schoolroom,  the  recognized  require- 
ments of  society,  the  patterns  of  worthy  living 
furnished  by  reading  or  by  chance  attention  to 
individuals,  will,  without  special  pleading,  or  even 
without  open  and  explicit  inculcation,  build  up  char- 
acter in  the  school  because  our  schools  are  so 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL  EDUCATION      9 1 

well  equipped,  so  thoroughly  built  up  !  I  conceive 
all  this  to  be  about  as  adequate  for  that  attain- 
ment as  a  case  of  minerals  in  the  room,  about 
which  nothing  is  ever  sai'd,  for  the  acquisition  of 
the  science  of  mineralogy.  In  fact,  it  suggests  a 
characteristic  passage  in  "  Our  Mutual  Friend," 
where  such  a  doctrine  is  touched  for  our  benefit  in 
Dicken's  inimitable  manner. 

Says  Mortimer  Lightwood  to  his  chum  Eugene 
Wrayburn,  complaining  of  their  extravagance  :  — 

"  '  Your  vagaries  have  increased  the  bill.' 

" '  Call  the  domestic  virtues,  vagaries  ! '  exclaimed 
Eugene,  raising  his  eyes  to  the  ceiling. 

"  '  This  very  complete  little  kitchen  of  ours,'  said 
Mortimer,  '  in  which  nothing  will  ever  be  cooked  '  — 

"  '  My  dear,  dear  Mortimer,'  returned  his  friend 
lazily,  lifting  his  head  a  little  to  look  at  him,  'how 
often  have  I  pointed  out  to  you  that  its  moral 
influence  is  the  important  thing  ? ' 

"  '  Its  moral  influence  on  this  fellow  ! '  exclaimed 
Lightwood,  laughing. 

"  '  Do  me  the  favor,'  said  Eugene,  getting  out  of 
his  chair  with  much  gravity,  '  to  come  and  inspect 
that  feature  of  our  establishment  which  you  rashly 
disparage  ; '  with  that,  taking  up  a  candle,  he  con- 
ducted his  chum  into  the  fourth  room  of  the  set 
of  chambers — a  little  narrow  room  which  was 
very  completely  and  neatly  fitted  as  a  kitchen. 


92        THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

'See,'  said  Eugene,  'miniature  flour-barrel,  roll- 
ing-pin, spice-box,  shelf  of  brown  jars,  chopping- 
board,  coffee-mill,  dresser  elegantly  furnished  with 
crockery,  saucepans  and  stew-pans,  roasting-jack, 
a  charming  kettle,  an  armory  of  dish-covers.  The 
moral  influence  of  these  objects,  in  forming  the 
domestic  virtues,  may  have  an  immense  influence 
upon  me.  In  fact,  I  have  an  idea  that  I  feel  the 
domestic  virtues  already  forming.' 

"  'How  can  you  be  so  ridiculous,  Eugene?'  said 
Mortimer.  '  But  if  I  could  find  you  in  earnest  for 
one  minute  I  would  try  to  say  an  earnest  word  to 
you.' 

"  '  An  earnest  word  ? '  repeated  Eugene.  *  The 
moral  influences  are  beginning  to  work :  say  on. 
In  this  desire  for  earnestness,  I  trace  the  happy 
influences  of  the  little  flour-barrel  and  coffee-mill. 
Gratifying  very.' " 

"Earnestness!"  Oh,  yes,  the  good  old  Saxon 
word,  —  how  much  it  involves  the  soul ! — to  yearn, 
to  long  fervently.  It  is  not  so  much  a  matter  of 
method  as  of  essence  and  of  end.  I  confess  to 
undying  enthusiasms  about  methods  of  instruction, 
about  courses  of  study,  about  all  the  law  and  se- 
quence of  intellectual  development ;  and  as  I  follow 
my  present  duty  as  a  school-official,  I  find  myself 
quick  to  remark  all  that,  —  to  enjoy  the  work  that 
is  done  in  the  best  way ;  to  be  glad  when  I  see  the 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION      93 

end  attained  easily,  rather  than  with  unnecessary 
difficulty ;  and  I  exult  that  the  art  of  teaching  is 
recognized  as  an  art ;  that  we  are  beginning  to 
understand  the  principles  of  mind-growth  ;  and  that 
school  education  is  assuming  the  proportions  of  a 
science.  But  more  and  more  I  am  oppressed  with 
a  sense  of  my  responsibility  in  demanding  char- 
acter as  the  grand,  the  inclusive  and  supreme 
object  of  all  this  complex  effort  and  expenditure ; 
character  as  the  all-embracing  goal  to  which  we 
must  lead  these  350,000  children  of  the  State.  I 
welcome  the  intellectual  and  the  manual  training 
because  they  are  the  adjuncts  and  ministering 
servants  of  soul-culture,  which  alone  tends  to 
character.  I  welcome  the  prospect  of  that  com- 
plete ideal  of  education,  which  starts  equally  with 
the  three  elements  of  the  child's  being,  —  body, 
mind,  and  soul,  —  and  develops  them  all  from 
infancy  in  their  natural  order;  which  offers  to  the 
mind,  perceptions,  and  to  the  heart,  sentiments  ; 
which  attempts  to  aid  the  struggle  of  the  soul,  as 
well  as  of  the  mind  and  body,  in  the  earliest  period 
of  life ;  which  presents  the  forms  of  nature  to  the 
child  as  images  of  the  thought  of  God ;  which 
fosters  the  child's  faith  in  unseen  presences,  and 
develops  his  intuitive  belief  in  a  heavenly  Father. 
You  know  I  refer  to  the  kindergarten,  which 
seems  to  have  found  the  secret  of  that  harmony 
of  human  development  which  involves  every  part 


94      THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE   NEW  EDUCATION 

of  the  child.  A  harmony  which  disappeared  after 
the  Greek  culture,  like  a  stream  running  under- 
ground, to  spring  into  life  in  these  latter  days 
for  us  and  for  our  children,  that  a  rounded  and 
complete,  all-involving  education  may  be  realized 
again.  I  hail  the  day  when  it  shall  start  every 
activity  of  child-nature  on  the  basis  of  the  su- 
preme importance  of  character !  I  hail  the  day 
when  it  shall  treat  the  forms  of  life  which  it 
studies  with  reverence  and  love  as  the  design 
and  pattern  of  God's  loving  infinitude  of  power ; 
when  the  natural  science  and  observation  work 
shall  minister  above  all  to  the  soul  and  fix  its 
divine  attachments !  I  hail  and  bless  the  day 
when  its  methods  of  love  shall  creep  into  the  pri- 
mary schools,  and  climb  up  into  the  great  grammar 
schools  where  I  have  taken  you  to  discover  the 
conditions  of  your  material  !  Then  no  longer  shall 
the  impatient  frown,  the  angry  word,  the  attitude 
of  disgust,  and  the  stroke  of  the  rattan  express  the 
relations  of  the  teacher  to  her  class,  —  the  poor 
unfortunates  who  have  never  a  good  soul-breath  to 
breathe.  Oh,  what  a  day  of  vantage  will  that  be 
for  the  Boston  schools  !  Now,  here  and  there, 
some  good  master  is  a  father  to  his  flock :  cares  for 
the  girls  as  if  they  were  his  daughters  and  for 
the  boys  as  they  were  his  sons  ;  there,  like  an 
oasis  in  the  desert,  verdure  waves,  wells  of  water 
slake  the  thirst,  and  generation  after  generation 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL  EDUCATION     95 

blesses  the  soul-fostering  educator.  Many  a  time 
I  have  held  out  my  hands  to  kind  and  sympa- 
thetic teachers,  full  of  sisterly  and  motherly  com- 
passion, encouragement,  and  love,  but  oh,  if  they 
could  all  feel  free  to  work  for  character,  not 
covertly,  not  incidentally  and  waveringly,  but 
openly,  explicitly,  steadily,  inspirationally,  and  con- 
fidently, as  well  as  wisely,  taking  it  to  be  the 
one  permeating  and  supreme  purpose  of  child- 
training  and  development,  —  the  land  would  have 
reason  to  call  them  blessed,  and  our  heritage 
would  prove  ample  for  all  that  has  been  com- 
mitted to  our  trust  ;  then  education  would  be 
harmonious  and  complete  ;  the  divine  thought  of 
childhood  would  blossom  out  in  all  its  activities ; 
all  the  exercise  of  mind  and  body,  perception, 
expression,  reason,  would  minister  to  the  free 
growth  of  the  soul,  and  the  law  of  development 
would  be  obeyed  in  the  child  as  in  the  flower,  by 
the  symmetry  and  right  order  of  its  parts,  by  the 
beauty  of  its  complex  unity. 

I  have  alluded  to  the  ungraded  classes,  for  they 
rest  upon  my  heart.  I  am  willing  to  leave  to  the 
gentlemen  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  all  the 
details  of  the  class-room  and  the  courses  of  study, 
if  I  might  accomplish  something  for  character  in 
these  schools.  They  make  such  pathetic  appeals 
to  the  true  teacher  to  save  and  uplift  them  through 
the  power  of  love  and  motherliness.  Yet,  many  a 


96      THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

time  have  I  been  haunted  by  the  face  of  some 
little  boy  made  an  habitual  truant  by  the  unsym- 
pathy  of  the  teacher  in  such  a  room,  felt  at  every 
instant  of  school-time,  and  in  every  relation  of  the 
child  to  the  school ;  which  assumed  the  depravity 
of  his  nature  and  the  hopelessness  of  his  outlook, 
and  offered  no  helping  hand,  or  even  loving  pity  ; 
and,  although  I  have  thought  I  cared  for  arithme- 
tic, for  geography,  for  the  natural  sciences,  —  yes, 
greatly,  —  and  have  sometimes  "  prated  of  nouns 
and  verbs,"  yet,  at  such  times  I  am  ready  to  say, 
"  I  am  determined  to  know  nothing  among  you," 
save  the  nourishing  of  the  heart,  the  education  of 
the  soul,  the  building  up  of  character  as  an  ob- 
ject of  school  education.  Let  the  will  be  trained 
to  prompt  decision,  to  high  resolve  ;  pile  good  habit 
on  good  habit,  and  right  method  on  right  method, 
until  the  involuntary  action  shall  be,  of  necessity, 
according  to  that  method  ;  until  habit  shall  become 
organic,  and  conduct  have  its  right  determination ; 
but  I  would  first,  and  above  all,  furnish  the  soul 
with  pure  and  true  ideals,  exercise  it  in  loving 
activities,  teach  it  to  abhor  the  evil  and  desire  the 
good.  I  would  support  it  by  faith  in  the  heavenly 
Father's  love  and  care  continually  ;  I  would  lead  it 
to  recognize  that  love  and  care  in  every  form  and 
structure  of  life,  and  in  every  human  condition  and 
activity ;  and  I  would  lead  it  to  believe  in  the 
divine  response  to  such  recognition ;  I  would 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL   EDUCATION     97 

lead  it  to  look  to  high  inspirations  and  eternal 
realities  ;  to  see  that  the  outward  and  material 
forms  are  but  the  expression,  the  symbol,  —  nay, 
the  demonstration,  —  of  spiritual  realities  ;  and  I 
would  let  the  little  children  hear  the  voice  of  ever- 
lasting truth  and  unchanging  law  in  all  the  presen- 
tation of  tangible  processes  which  we  can  put 
before  them  for  their  discovery  and  comprehension. 
Because  we  have  the  immortal  essence  of  soul 
to  deal  with  in  each  of  these  human  beings,  for 
that,  I  believe,  we  are  in  the  last  result  ac- 
countable. For  all  these  outward  forms  of  conduct 
are  but  the  material  expression  (if  I  may  so  speak) 
of  character ;  they  bear  the  same  relation  to  its 
essence  as  the  material  and  outward  world  bears  to 
the  mind  which  perceives  it,  or  by  which  it  ex- 
presses itself.  The  soul  is  an  entity  .which  in- 
volves the  whole  threefold  being  of  man,  and 
consummates  itself  in  the  organic  result  we  call 
character.  It  is  built  up  by  the  exercise  of  its 
functions,  just  as  the  mind  and  body  are  built  up 
by  the  exercise  of  their  functions.  The  activities 
of  the  soul  involve  the  activities  of  the  mind,  but 
add  to  those  activities  the  inspiration  of  its  divine 
relations.  All  activities  are  the  expression  of 
entities.  The  body,  the  mind,  the  soul,  —  each 
expresses  itself  through  activities,  one  equally  with 
another,  one  as  truly  and  distinctively  as  another. 
There  can  be  no  harmonious  unfolding  of  the 


98      THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

human  being,  except  by  the  simultaneous  develop- 
ment, in  right  subordination,  of  these  powers  of  the 
unity  of  this  complete  existence.  The  mind  is  not 
developed  by  cramming  it  with  facts;  the  soul  is 
not  developed  by  cramming  it  with  maxims,  or  by 
goading  the  will.  The  mind  must  be  provided  with 
images  through  the  senses  ;  the  soul  must  be  pro- 
vided with  ideals  through  the  imagination  and 
sympathy.  The  mind  must  exercise  thought,  the 
soul,  affections,  in  order  to  growth.  The  mind 
must  apprehend  ;  the  soul  must  feel.  The  soul 
awaits  your  educative  effort  in  earliest  childhood, 
in  every  child,  and  to  neglect  its  education  is  to 
neglect  your  greatest  duty  and  your  greatest  op- 
portunity. You  must  provide  an  atmosphere  for 
the  divine  breath  of  the  soul ;  you.  must  be  able  to 
call  it  forth  into  the  light  of  truth,  into  the  air  of 
purity,  into  the  constant  activity  of  love.  I  will 
not  affront  your  intelligence  by  explaining  how 
you  can  do  this.  You  know  that  one  can  furnish 
nothing  for  another  which  he  has  not  himself ;  and 
to  feed  the  soul,  one  must  know  what  soul-food  is, 
and  have  grown  soul-strong,  so  that  sweetness  and 
light,  truth  and  grace,  shine  out  in  his  whole  de- 
meanor, and  call  out  the  same  attributes  in  others. 
The  great  secret  of  educative  success  is  the  sym- 
pathetic power  to  draw  out  what  is  hidden,  and 
reveal  it  more  and  more.  The  kindergarten  as 
Froebel  conceived  it,  was  a  real  blossoming  of  the 


CHARACTER   AND  SCHOOL  EDUCATION     99 

child-nature  into  symmetry  and  beauty,  into  har- 
mony of  its  interrelated  parts,  into  unity  of  its 
complex  relations.  The  approach  through  mate- 
rial forms  to  the  great  underlying  principles  of  all 
development,  is  one  of  the  most  characteristic  and 
broadest,  as  well  as  deepest,  features  of  the  plan. 
It  is  a  great  point  to  lead  the  child  to  perceive  in 
all  tangible  things  only  the  symbol  or  demonstra- 
tion of  intangible  ideals  and  unseen  truths,  till  he 
gradually  comprehends  the  great  principle  of  the 
ctmtinuty  of  law,  and  learns  to  read  in  the  book  of 
nature  the  immortal  lessons  of  the  soul. 

Whoever  is  afraid  to  take  hold  of  these  studies 
of  natural  science  in  a  vital  way,  let  him  go  to  the 
kindergarten  and  learn  how  to  deal  with  the  soul  of 
the  child ;  how  to  lead  the  child  into  his  relations 
with  nature,  with  man,  and  with  God,  into  all  his 
endowments  of  body,  mind,  and  soul,  from  the  start, 
and  all  together  :  no  warped  and  one-sided  pulling 
this  way  and  that,  till  the  schools  have  produced 
that  monstrosity,  — a  body  and  mind  without  a  soul, 
physical  and  intellectual  power,  without  character ; 
a  partially  developed  and  disordered  human  being, 
who  can  only  illustrate  the  awful  alternative, 
"  What  shall  a  man  give  in  exchange  for  his  soul  ?  " 

I  admit  that  home  in  its  highest  use  is  for  the 
growth  of  the  soul.  Then,  since  all  is  now  left 
for  the  school,  let  us  bring  the  home  influences 
and  home  atmosphere  into  the  schoolroom.  I 


100     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

bespeak  your  attention  to  this  harmonizing  and 
soul-educating  power  of  the  ideal  of  home  as  a 
factor  of  the  school-life.  I  ask  you  to  adopt  the 
methods  of  a  true  home  in  your  schools.  I  have 
seen  such  an  atmosphere  in  some  of  the  Boston 
schools.  I  have  felt  it  as  I  entered  the  door. 
I  have  seen  it  shining  from  the  face  of  'every 
teacher.  I  have  marked  its  responsive  gleam  in 
every  pupil's  behavior,  and  I  have  felt  assured 
that  here  souls  were  being  educated  silently, 
perhaps,  and  unannounced,  but  immortally  and 
divinely.  Such  schools  ought  to  inspire  all  teachers 
and  redeem  the  State.  But,  alas  !  they  are  too  few ; 
yet  if  these  words  of  mine  might  arouse  one  echo, 
and  that  be  repeated  by  many  a  thoughtful  and 
willing  teacher  here  and  elsewhere,  I  should  begin 
to  understand  why  I  was  called  here  to  take  this 
work  from  the  hands  of  one  whose  pure  life  and 
unremitting  devotion  left  an  unsullied  lustre  upon 
it.  This,  then,  is  the  burden  of  my  message  to 
you,  fellow-workers.  If  ever  a  generation  of  men 
and  women  needed  to  exalt  character  as  the 
supreme  object  of  education,  it  is  ours  !  If  ever 
a  responsibility  for  the  life  and  growth  of  a  great 
nation  in  the  midst  of  threatening  dangers,  in  the 
crisis  of  its  formative  agitation,  in  the  heat  of  its 
alchemizing  fires,  if  ever  such  a  responsibility 
weighed  heavily  upon  its  educative  and  elimina- 
tive  and  assimilating  powers,  that  responsibility 


CHARACTER  AND  SCHOOL  EDUCATION    IOI 

weighs  down  upon  us,  upon  you  and  me,  this  day 
and  this  hour !  a  responsibility  of  holding  up  the 
highest  and  truest  ideal  of  a  national  education ; 
an  ideal  that  has  for  its  lofty  and  inspiring 
standard,  character  as  the  grand,  inclusive,  and 
supreme  object  of  an  harmonious  education. 


ADDRESS   TO  PORTLAND    TEACHERS  DURING  A 
PRESIDENTIAL   ELECTION 


WE  are  on  the  eve  of  a  new  Olympiad.  The 
streets  are  filled  with  excited  processions ;  banners 
wave  and  shouts  reverberate  all  over  our  land. 
The  little  boys  have  paraded  their  train-bands  up 
and  down  our  streets  ;  the  young  men  have  had 
their  torchlight  processions ;  and  the  wrestlers  in 
the  contest  are  hoarse  with  hurrahs,  and  deaf  with 
the  din  of  battle.  If  one  could  see,  as  in  a  bird's- 
eye  view,  the  whole  land,  he  would  see  wild  agita- 
tion from  one  end  to  another,  and  feel  the  electric 
thrill  which  our  great  national  elections  arouse  in 
every  boy  and  man,  may  I  not  also  say  every 
girl  and  woman  ?  What  a  vigorous  and  popular 
national  feeling,  what  a  united  interest,  all  this 
indicates !  As  the  football  of  party  watchwords, 
and  of  the  personality  of  the  leaders  themselves, 
is  tossed  hither  and  thither,  all  hearts  beat  in 

IO2 


RELATION  OF  SCHOOL    TO    CITIZENSHIP     1 03 

sympathy  with  either  one  side  or  the  other,  and 
all  eyes  are  riveted  on  the  issue.  But  we,  the 
teachers  who  go  daily  to  our  work,  ask  ourselves, 
What  have  we  to  do  with  such  a  scene  ?  We 
cannot  avoid  the  reflection,  that  as  one  after 
another  these  epochs  return  and  arouse  the  whole 
people,  our  classes  of  boys  and  girls  are  coming 
into  them  as  actors,  and  all  these  important 
national  questions  will  devolve  upon  them  to 
settle.  The  stupendous  truth  is,  that  we  are  doing 
more  to  shape  the  national  life  of  the  future  than 
any  of  the  politicians  or  reformers  can  do,  for  we 
are  educating  all  the  future  citizens  of  the  land. 

We  do  not  undertake  to  conduct  political  or 
military  schools ;  but  we  are  making  the  men  and 
women  who  shall  form  the  State,  and  that  aspect 
of  our  training  must  come  into  our  purposes  and 
work  in  every  particular.  "  What  constitutes  a 
State?" 

We  set  our  children  to  recite  that  noble  verse, 
and  we  cannot  improve  upon  its  doctrine :  "  Men 

—  high-minded  men,"  we  answer,  and  these  must 
be  turned  out  of  this  workshop  of  men  and  women, 

—  the  school, — by  far  the  greatest  part  from  the 
public  school.     We   pour  into  its  curriculum  all 
that  can  enrich  the  commonwealth  through  the 
medium  of  these  growing  members  and  elements 
of  the  State.     We  say  they  must  be  intelligent; 
they  must  read,  write,  and  cipher ;  they  must  know 


IO4     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

about  the  earth,  their  home,  and  about  the  people 
in  it ;  they  must  be  wide  awake  and  know  how 
to  use  every  faculty,  ready  to  learn  and  to  express 
themselves  in  science,  art,  and  literature,  that 
they  may  give  to  each  other  and  to  all  men  the 
results  of  their  activities ;  they  must  be  healthy 
and  strong,  physically,  that  they  may  contribute 
health  and  strength  and  vitality  to  their  genera- 
tion. All  this  means  aptness  and  facility  in 
doing  what  their  hands  or  brains  find  to  do,  what 
needs  to  be  done,  what  their  age  asks  of  them,— 
physiology,  physics,  manual  training,  the  powers 
of  observation  developed.  Then,  above  all,  we 
need  character ;  the  soul  evolved  for  the  lifting  of 
the  race,  for  the  spiritual  as  well  as  physical  and 
intellectual  growth  of  the  State  and  progress  of 
the  national  life.  Rounded,  completed  men  and 
women  we  must  produce  to  build  into  the  life  of 
the  nation. 

We  must  not  forget,  also,  that  the  family,  the 
home,  is  the  unit  of  the  political  body  corporate ; 
and  we  must  reach  the  home  life  of  the  next  gen- 
eration if  we  would  reach  its  political  life.  How 
nearly  do  we  approximate  these  great  ends  ? 

Every  nation  must  train  its  material  for  future 
use  in  the  government.  The  Prussian  schools,  the 
French  schools,  like  the  Roman,  are  so  closely 
connected  with  the  government,  that  they  seem 
almost  like  the  Spartan  system  which  effaced  the 


RELATION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP     1 05 

home.  This  is  too  mechanical  a  relation  to 
national  life  for  the  genius  of  free  America.  We 
cannot  afford  to  blot  out  the  home,  to  take  out 
"the  very  pulse  of  the  machine."  The  American 
idea  is  more  in  accordance  with  the  natural 
instincts  of  humanity.  The  nation  is  for  the 
citizen,  not  the  citizen  for  the  nation ;  the  home  is 
the  dearest  possession  of  the  people  in  their  indi- 
vidual life,  and  in  their  ideal  life  also.  "  Stay  at 
home,  mother,"  said  a  brave  soldier  to  his  mother, 
who  talked  of  going  into  the  hospital;  "if  home  is 
broken  up  we  have  nothing  to  fight  for,  our  cour- 
age will  be  gone." 

The  home  is  also  the  dearest  possession  of  the 
nation,  and  what  we  can  do  for  that  is  the  best 
that  we  can  do  for  the  State.  So  we  teach  the 
girls  to  sew  and  cook,  and  the  boys  to  use  tools 
and  manage  accounts,  that  not  only  fingers  may 
be  deft  and  cunning  and  time  well  occupied,  but 
that  all  may  help  make  comfort  and  happiness  and 
virtue  in  our  homes,  and  men  and  women  may 
live  in  families,  and  bring  up  the  generation  to 
come  most  favorably  and  as  nature  directs. 

If  we  examine  the  progressive  courses  of  study 
now  provided  for  our  public  schools,  I  think  we 
shall  find  all  this  multiform  development  provided 
for  in  reasonable  measure.  Look  first  at  the  kin- 
dergarten, which,  in  the  leading  cities,  is  now 
placed  at  the  foundation  of  public-school  instruc- 


106     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

tion.  If  you  have  studied  its  theories  you  know 
that  they  open  up  into  the  fullest  development  of 
every  child.  The  initial  idea  is  the  home ;  the 
mother's  love  and  sympathy  extended  to  each 
child,  and  nature,  the  mother  of  us  all,  leading  the 
child  to  feel  his  relations  with  her,  to  hold  her 
hand,  sit  in  her  lap,  and  rest  in  her  bosom.  The 
little  one  in  the  kindergarten  says  his  "  good- 
morning"  to  the  sun  and  his  "good-night"  to  the 
moon.  He  calls  the  flowers  and  the  plants  his 
friends,  and  the  animals  his  playfellows.  Every- 
thing about  him  shares  his  love,  and  in  all  he  is 
taught  to  know  the  heavenly  Father  and  to 
express  reverence  and  gratitude  to  Him.  All  the 
plays  of  the  kindergarten  emphasize  the  child's 
sympathy  with  his  fellows,  and  his  unselfish  care 
and  helpful  love  for  others.  The  child  is  put  into 
intimate  relations  with  nature,  with  man,  and  with 
God. 

This  develops  a  healthful  social  life,  and  pre- 
pares him  to  become  a  useful  member  of  society : 
all  of  which  is  so  much  toward  making  him  a  good 
citizen.  In  the  plays  he  learns  fraternity  and  the 
common  humanities,  and  through  the  occupations 
he  learns  orderly  industry,  mutual  helpfulness,  the 
germ  of  social  and  national  life.  Of  course,  all 
that  makes  him  a  good  child  makes  him  a  good 
element  in  the  community  of  childhood ;  it  tends 
to  make  him  grow  into  a  good  man,  and,  therefore, 


into  a  good  member  of  the  community  of  men. 
This  applies  equally  to  the  girls,  and  extends 
equally  to  the  future  woman.  All  that  makes 
children  symmetrical  in  their  development,  physi- 
cal, intellectual,  and  moral,  is  in  the  line  of  virtue, 
intelligence,  and  health  in  the  body  politic.  The 
individuals  makes  up  the  community,  and  the  sum 
of  individual  and  private  worth  is  the  exponent  of 
public  worth  and  national  greatness. 

Then  in  a  well-arranged  and  psychological  cur- 
riculum, all  this  work  begun  in  the  kindergarten 
goes  on  under  new  adaptations  of  circumstance 
and  method  in  the  primary  school.  Still  the  edu- 
cation of  the  senses  and  the  growing  relationship 
with  outward  nature  :  observation  lessons  in  color, 
form,  place,  size,  qualities  of  objects  ;  everywhere 
experiment  and  investigation  by  the  hands  and 
the  senses,  —  plant  and  animal  life,  the  human 
body,  the  sky  and  all  that  it  offers  to  the  child's 
wondering  gaze,  the  earth,  air,  and  water,  all  are 
made  a  constant  study,  with  the  sympathetic  in- 
quiry and  intelligent  direction  of  the  teacher  ;  un- 
til the  child  is  everywhere  met  by  phenomena 
which  stimulate  his  mental  activities,  train  his 
senses,  and  give  facility  to  his  physical  powers, 
at  the  same  time  feeding  his  spiritual  life,  and 
preparing  him  to  hold  communion  with  all  that 
meets  his  awakened  consciousness  and  shows  him 
to  himself  as  part  of  a  universal  whole,  and  in 


IO8     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

harmony  with  all  things  through  love  and  truth. 
So  his  character  (and  thereby  his  conduct  and 
manners)  is  gradually  and  permanently  formed,  and 
he  is  becoming  that  essential  factor  in  a  worthy 
and  noble  state,  the  progressive,  single-minded, 
and  honest  man.  I  speak  of  these  natural-science 
departments  because  they  are  comparatively  new 
as  parts  of  primary-school  work. 

Of  course  the  old  paths  of  the  three  R's  are 
trodden  still,  but  are  all  vivified  with  this  new  life. 
Number,  reading,  and  writing :  how  they  teem 
with  the  wealth  and  enthusiasm  of  the  natural- 
science  work !  in  connection  with  lessons  on  min- 
erals, flowers,  and  animals,  or  geographical  stories 
and  journeys,  they  gain  new  life  and  development. 
Drawing,  moulding,  and  singing,  beginning  with 
the  babes  in  the  kindergarten,  and  growing  more 
defined  and  accurate,  more  suggestive  and  ar- 
tistic, more  varied  in  expression,  all  the  way  along 
through  primary  and  grammar  grades,  round  out 
this  progressive  and  expansive  building-up  of 
the  future  citizen  ;  while  physical  exercises,  all 
the  way  up,  set  each  muscle  and  sinew  in  health- 
ful beauty,  strength,  and  availability,  so  that  his 
body  may  be  able  to  work  out  his  ideals.  And  if, 
in  all  this  manifold  growth  and  exercise,  the  soul 
of  the  child  slips  away  into  error,  and  wrong 
thought  and  action  crowd  out  the  right,  and  distort 
the  manhood  or  womanhood,  it  is  because  some 


RELATION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP     1 09 

cog  in  the  wheel  of  the  child's  relations  with 
home,  school,  or  the  street  does  not  catch  well  or 
run  smoothly,  and  meets  too  much  friction  ;  then 
the  real  teacher  will  strain  every  nerve  to  reach 
and  correct  the  fault,  dealing  with  the  personal 
experience  and  conscience. 

Now  the  pupil  of  the  grammar  school  studies 
the  human  body  specifically,  and  its  laws  are  more 
distinctly  understood  in  their  relations  to  right  and 
wrong  habits.  The  statute  of  the  State  requires 
the  teaching  of  the  effect  of  alcoholic  liquors. 
Here  begins  the  first  effort  to  meet  the  tempta- 
tions which  thicken  about  the  growing  boy  and 
threaten  to  make  a  brute  of  him.  This  is  more 
palpably  direct  and  important  in  its  influence  on 
citizenship  than  mere  generalizations.  How  much 
or  how  little  of  this  aggressive  teaching  is  best 
for  the  child,  must  be  decided  by  his  surround- 
ings and  his  evident  tendencies.  I  would  deal 
very  cautiously  with  such  lines  of  instruction.  I 
do  not  recommend  the  representation  of  images 
of  vicious  impulse  and  habit  for  the  attention  of 
children.  I  like  to  see  evil  killed  by  good,  if  it 
has  not  become  so  deeply  rooted  that  only  sub- 
soil ploughing  will  do ;  but,  at  any  rate,  see  to 
it  that  some  thing  interferes  with  the  degrada- 
tion and  indulgence  of  the  animal  appetites,  and 
that  we  are  to  have  a  generation  from  our  schools 
who  are  more  human  and  less  brutish  ;  that  human 


HO     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

life  and  character  shall  go  on  in  its  evolution 
towards  the  divine  and  immortal,  and  that  our  land 
shall  not  lose  the  lustre  of  its  high  beginning. 

Geography  and  history,  as  well  as  physics,  con- 
duct the  child  to  a  broad  outlook  of  study,  and 
leave  him  at  the  threshold  of  the  high  school, 
with  tastes  indicated,  habits  formed,  and  some 
ground  for  the  right  selection  of  further  subjects 
of  study  and  tendencies  of  growth.  If  circum- 
stances and  natural  bent  lead  him  to  make  his  active 
connections  with  society,  and  thrust  him  into  the 
arena  of  work  and  the  struggle  of  life  at  once,  he 
is  still  better  prepared  to  undertake  it  than  the 
embryo  citizen  has  been  at  any  time  in  the  pre- 
vious history  of  the  world. 

And  now  comes  industrial  training  to  complete 
the  endowments  which  the  public  school  offers  to 
the  coming  generation.  The  boy  must  know  how 
to  take  his  place  in  the  economy  of  the  household. 
Give  him  the  saw,  the  plane,  and  the  hammer  ;  let 
his  muscle  grow  hard,  and  his  body  become  vigor- 
ous and  elastic.  Let  him  practise  athletics  and 
military  drill,  that  he  may  be  ready  for  service, 
public  and  private,  so  to  be  at  least  a  unit  that 
can  be  counted  in  the  grand  body  politic.  The 
girl  learns  housewifery,  sewing  and  cooking,  do- 
mestic economy  and  thrift,  that  the  home  may  be 
a  beneficent  factor  in  our  private  and  public  life. 
I  would  like  to  take  you  to  these  classes  and  the 


RELA  TION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP     I  1 1 

exhibits  of  their  work.  Already  the  homes  re- 
spond in  thankful  appreciation  of  this  blessing. 
Fathers,  mothers,  and  brothers,  grandmothers  and 
grandfathers,  come  to  the  sewing  and  the  cookery 
exhibits,  and  look  with  pride  on  a  work  which 
touches  their  comfort  so  closely,  and  makes  home 
a  centre  of  happiness  for  all.  No  surer  purifier 
of  national  life  exists  than  safe  and  happy  homes, 
where  three  generations  cluster  about  the  hearth, 
and  the  mother  knows  no  higher  joy  than  to  serve 
and  keep  them  all  within  her  loving  fold.  And  so 
we  educate  the  coming  mother  to  be  companion 
and  inspirer  of  him  who,  for  the  most  part,  has 
to  bear  the  brunt  of  the  outside  fight  for  life ;  that 
she  may  understand  and  sympathize  in  all  that 
befalls  the  race ;  that  she  may  form  wise  opinions, 
and  inculcate  virtue  and  honor  from  her  throne  in 
the  kingdom  of  home  ;  and  that  she  may  gladly  do 
her  part  in  preparing  loyal  recruits  for  the  great 
army  of  good  citizenship  that  shall  continually 
renew  the  life  of  the  nation.  And  if  the  time  is 
at  hand  when  her  ballot  shall  affect  all  the  ques- 
tions of  the  day,  —  nay,  if  its  foot  is  on  our 
threshold,  we  can  say  we  have  educated  our  girls 
for  such  a  crisis  ;  their  knowledge  and  their  enthu- 
siasm is  not  one  whit  behind  that  of  our  boys  in 
all  matters  connected  with  the  geography,  the 
history,  the  government,  and  the  possibilities  of 
this  great  domain  which  they  inherit,  and  their 


112     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

judgment  is  as  fully  worth  harvesting;  they  can 
bring  vital  and  nourishing  forces  to  bear  on  the 
laws  and  the  policy,  on  the  right  representation  of 
our  affairs,  municipal,  state,  or  national ;  they  will 
breathe  the  spirit  of  home  into  the  public  councils, 
and  hasten  the  day  when  sympathy,  union,  and 
harmony  shall  make  strife  to  cease  among  men, 
and  place  our  land  in  the  vanguard  of  nations  which 
learn  war  no  more. 

For  woman  owes  this  debt  to  the  state  equally 
with  man,  and  why  should  she  not  be  allowed  to 
pay  it  ?  We  become  careless  and  thoughtless  by 
the  very  prodigality  of  our  blessings.  We  seldom 
think  of  the  common  benefactions  of  nature  until 
we  are  deprived  of  them.  We  are  in  danger  of 
taking  as  a  matter  of  course  the  very  richest  of 
our  gifts,  without  a  suggestion  that  we  owe  a  return 
to  the  source  of  those  gifts  commensurate  with 
their  extent  and  value  to  us.  So  the  pupil  in  the 
public  school  may  be  in  danger  of  appropriating 
as  an  independent  right  what  he  is  indebted  to  the 
municipality  for,  and  as  much  in  duty  bound  to 
repay  in  some  sort  as  if  loaned  him  by  a  friend. 
I  am  always  reminded  strongly  at  the  graduation 
of  grammar-school  classes,  of  this  indebtedness  of 
the  child  to  the  state,  which  has  bestowed  the 
best  opportunities  for  education  upon  him,  as  if 
he  were  its  especial  care.  What  more  could  have 
been  offered  him  were  he  the  child  of  the  most 


RELATION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP     113 

honored  citizen,  to  whose  services  the  state  owed 
its  salvation  ?  It  is  right  that  the  child  of  the 
public  school  should  be  reminded  of  this  obliga- 
tion to  the  fostering  care  of  the  town  where  he 
lives.  He  has  been  supplied  with  all  the  luxuries 
of  school  education  in  these  lavish  days.  He  must 
be  made  to  feel  the  strain  of  his  relations  to  the 
giver.  He  must  be  led  to  exercise  a  lively  grati- 
tude and  wish  to  give  back  some  of  his  acquired 
power  and  training  to  the  service  of  the  public, 
and  share  the  responsibility  of  guarding,  in  his 
time,  the  interests  of  the  next  generation.  The 
duties  of  citizenship  should  be  made  peremptory, 
and  not  to  be  cast  aside  in  honesty.  He  is  not  to 
devote  himself,  first,  or  wholly,  to  his  personal 
interests,  but  gladly  to  remember  that  his  shoulder 
is  to  be  put  to  the  wheel,  and  that  his  gifts  must 
be  held  at  the  public  service  ;  that  he  must  be  a 
worker  in  the  community,  and  help  on  its  prog- 
ress and  welfare.  As  he  has  freely  received,  so 
he  must  freely  give ;  not  alone  at  some  great  crisis, 
but  steadily  as  one  of  the  members  of  the  body 
which  rises  or  falls  in  the  scale  according  as  its 
members  rise  or  fall.  To  take  an  intelligent  and 
unselfish  interest  in  public  affairs,  not  to  shirk 
duty,  to  found  a  home  and  add  its  momentum  of 
intelligence  and  virtue  to  the  future  state,  is  the 
duty  of  every  man  and  woman  in  the  land.  This 
is  a  doctrine  which  is  falling  into  such  sad  disuse, 


114     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

that  I  think  the  public  conscience  should  be 
aroused  in  regard  to  it  and  other  primal  duties 
and  responsibilities  of  human  life.  The  decrease 
of  an  intelligent  native  population  is  one  of  the 
lamentable  features  of  the  political  situation,  and 
results  from  the  torpor  of  conscience  among 
enlightened  people  on  some  of  the  fundamental 
requirements  of  the  law  of  social  as  well  as  indi- 
vidual progress. 

I  hear  people  saying  sometimes,  Patriotism  is  a 
very  narrow  virtue ;  go  out  into  a  wider  field  of 
relationship,  and  love  and  serve  humanity.  I  can- 
not agree  with  such  a  sublimated  notion.  As  love 
of  country  is  an  instinctive  love,  an  expansion  of 
that  purest  of  all  emotions,  —  the  love  of  home ; 
as  it  has  inspired  some  of  the  most  heroic  and 
unselfish  deeds  of  mankind  ;  as  it  has  been 
strongest  in  the  strong,  and  loftiest  in  the  most 
exalted  characters  we  have  known ;  as  even  Jesus 
wept  over  Jerusalem  with  the  yearning  of  parental 
love,  —  I  believe  we  may  throw  all  such  qualms  to 
the  winds,  and  trust  ourselves  to  inculcate  pa- 
triotism in  our  children  from  generation  to  gen- 
eration. Certainly,  in  our  land  and  day,  it  is  a  very 
broad  and  inclusive  sentiment,  and  almost  coin- 
cident with  a  love  of  the  race. 

But  you  ask :  Is  there  not  a  specific  course  of 
preparation  for  citizenship  which  should  inhere 
in  our  public-school  courses  ?  I  reply :  Let  our 


RELA  TION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP      1 1  5 

teachers  and  educators  see  to  it  that  our  country's 
geography  and  history  are  studied  with  loyal  en- 
thusiasm, and  that  civil  government  holds  impor- 
tant place  in  school  study.  The  Declaration  of 
Independence,  the  Constitution,  and  the  statutes 
of  the  Commonwealth  should  become  a  part  of 
every  boy's  and  girl's  preparation  for  citizenship. 
Our  most  fervid  and  lasting  national  utterances  — 
Washington's  Farewell  Address,  Lincoln's  Gettys- 
burg Oration,  Lowell's  Commemoration  Ode  — 
should  be  in  the  memory  and  hearts  of  every  one 
of  these  who  are  to  participate  so  soon  in  the  active 
duties  of  American  citizenship.  I  would  try  to 
furnish  these  who  are  to  enter  the  struggle  at 
once  with  a  defence  against  our  especial  national 
temptations,  —  the  love  of  money,  greed  of  gain, 
lust  for  show  and  office,  the  growing  social  and 
political  corruption,  and  general  contempt  for 
modest  worth  and  conscientious  industry  and 
labor.  Try  to  teach  the  lesson  that  there  is  no 
small  or  great  in  duty,  no  need  of  applause,  but 
that  honor  is  due  only  to  faithful  performance 
of  appointed  service.  Carry  these  moral  axioms 
through  all  the  school  courses,  and  educate  the 
children  to  an  unconscious  obedience  to  them. 

Let  the  boys  and  girls  identify  their  own  with 
their  country's  honor;  bring  them  up  to  thrill  with 
devotion  at  the  thought  of  any  service,  any  sacri- 
fice, she  may  call  for ;  let  them  love  the  flag  and 


Il6     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

the  name  and  symbols  of  American  nationality, 
and  strive  to  uphold  their  glory  in  the  most  ex- 
alted spirit.  Let  them  sing  our  national  hymns 
and  songs,  and  recite  with  joy  and  pride  the 
patriotic  sentences  of  our  statesmen  and  the  pa- 
triotic stanzas  of  our  poets.  Teach  them  to  read 
American  authors  and  commemorate  their  genius. 
Emphasize  the  national  festivals  and  holidays,  and 
dedicate  the  birthdays  of  our  heroes  and  our  fa- 
mous men  and  women  in  science,  literature,  art, 
and  nobility  of  life,  to  the  ardent  love,  pride,  and 
gratitude  of  the  children.  I  know  you  would  feel 
how  much  this  has  already  been  done  in  the 
schools,  could  you  visit  them  freely.  It  is  enkin- 
dling to  the  enthusiasm  of  the  most  hearty 
patriot  among  us,  to  hear  a  recitation  in  American 
history,  or  a  lesson  in  American  literature.  We 
see  at  once  that  all  hearts  beat  with  passionate 
devotion  as  their  voices  resound  the  national  an- 
them, and  as  they  rehearse  the  grand  struggles  and 
conquests  through  which  this  free  land  has  grown 
up  to  the  foremost  place  it  holds  to-day.  I  am 
sure  as  I  look  into  their  faces,  that  a  "great 
uprising "  would  again  answer  the  clarion  call  of 
our  country's  need,  and  the  whole  land,  with  all  its 
diverse  elements,  would  be  flooded  with  the  wave 
of  patriotic  sacrifice  and  as  unstinted  an  outpouring 
of  blood  and  treasure  as  greeted  the  guns  of  Sum- 
ter.  I  do  not  fear  for  our  country's  future  unity, 


RELATION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP      1 17 

when  I  pass  from  school  to  school,  though  I  see 
the  stamp  of  many  nationalities  on  the  upturned 
faces,  and  hear  the  varied  accents  in  which  the 
tongues  of  the  children  syllable  their  loyalty ;  for  I 
recognize  in  all  the  supreme  love  of  freedom  and 
American  institutions.  I  know  that  in  the  long 
measurements  of  history  they  shall  seem  no  more 
alien  than  we  whose  ancestors  came  over  two 
hundred  years  earlier  to  breathe  the  free  air  of 
liberty,  and  to  found  a  government  of  the  people, 
by  the  people,  and  for  the  people.  I  am  not 
alarmed  at  the  fact  that  some  of  our  city  schools 
are  in  the  main,  or  wholly,  made  up  of  children  of 
foreign  parentage,  not  even  when,  in  a  class  of 
thirty-five,  I  find  French,  German,  Portuguese, 
Italian,  Swede,  Pole,  Hungarian,  Russian,  and 
Irish,  most  of  whom  must  be  taught  the  English 
language ;  for  I  see  that  their  parents  have  fled 
from  the  Old  World  with  ardent  longing  and 
purpose  to  make  themselves  and  their  children 
true  Americans.  I  remember  with  deep  emotion 
the  devotion  of  the  foreign-born  citizens  in  all  the 
great  crises  of  our  history.  I  see  with  gratitude 
the  names  of  French,  Irish,  and  Germans  on  our 
most  glorious  pages,  and  realize  that  many  of  our 
deathless  names  belong  more  to  these  children 
than  they  do  to  me.  The  truth  is  that  they  and 
we  share  alike  the  blood  and  the  traditions  of  men 
who  chose  this  land  as  their  country,  because  the 


Il8     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

voice  of  freedom  charmed  their  ears  and  drew 
them  hither ;  they  saw  its  flag  waving  from  afar, 
and  were  ready  to  leave  fatherland  to  live  under 
it,  and  will  be  ready  to  die  for  it  whenever  men- 
aced by  a  tyrant.  They  have  done  this  in 
the  past,  and  let  me  say  again  and  again,  that  in 
our  schools  they  are  already  and  only  Americans. 
They  love  to  learn  of  our  noble  rivers,  our  lofty 
mountains,  our  vast  plains  ;  they  journey  in  imagi- 
nation with  as  much  alacrity  from  one  shore  to 
another  of  our  measureless  heritage,  their  heritage 
as  well  as  ours,  and  feel  the  same  pride  and  sense 
of  possession  as  the  child  of  the  Puritan.  Let 
them  enter  into  their  inheritance :  it  is  their  as  well 
as  our  promised  land  ;  we  are  all  settlers  —  the  era 
of  settlement  is  not  yet  at  its  meridian.  It  began 
with  the  earliest  European  colonies  who  sought 
these  shores  for  a  home,  and  will  go  on  till  every 
acre  of  our  continent  is  peopled  with  the  liberty- 
loving  adventurers,  and  the  strong  in  faith  of 
every  creed,  of  every  clime,  and  of  every  nation 
who  have  sought,  or  shall  seek,  a  better  country. 
We  must  all  join  to  prove  this  indeed  the  better 
country  of  their  faith  and  their  desire. 

So  I  can  but  wonder  at  the  shallow  distinctions 
which  some  of  our  good  but  narrow  people  are 
making  among  our  children,  our  teachers,  and  our 
school-boards.  Look  down  beneath  this  surface- 
agitation  and  find  the  deep  current  of  American 


RELATION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP     119 

loyalty,  —  steady,  reliable,  and  conserving  the 
united  forces  of  many  waters  for  the  great  flood- 
tide  of  the  nation's  life.  Believe  in  it  and  receive 
it  in  sympathy,  O  teachers  in  our  public  schools ! 
for  it  holds  the  destiny  of  a  continent  in  its  grasp. 
Forget  the  walls  of  partition,  nor  constantly  re- 
build them,  for  they  are  waiting  to  be  broken 
down.  The  fires  of  every  human  altar  are  reach- 
ing out  together  to  express  the  glow  of  an  Ameri- 
can nationality,  fusing  all  elements  into  the  richest 
political  organism  of  time.  Let  not  our  narrow 
bigotry,  our  short-sighted  exclusiveness,  refuse  the 
lavishness  of  the  gift,  nor  impeach  the  wisdom  of 
our  many-sided,  broad,  and  progressive  system  of 
education. 

It  remains,  then,  for  future  history  to  discover 
whether  we  shall  be  equal  to  the  formation  of  such 
a  state  as  is  put  within  our  moulding  hands ; 
whether  character  shall  prove  so  indissoluble  an 
element  of  our  nationality  as  to  preserve  its  unity 
through  such  a  crucial  test  as  is  now  going  on  and 
may  continue  for  generations.  Is  there  faith  and 
integrity  sufficient  to  the  task  of  assimilating  such 
an  influx  of  material  ?  How  much  can  we  do,  who 
stand  at  the  gateway  of  the  coming  era  of  national 
life  ?  Above  all,  we  must  exert  ourselves  to  exalt 
virtue,  purity,  temperance,  and  truth,  and  to  fix 
them  as  foundation  stones  in  the  lives  we  are  per- 
mitted to  touch,  that  as  they  go  out  to  be  built 


I2O     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

into  the  temple  of  our  national  life,  they  shall 
prove  strong  and  uplifting,  enduring  because  built 
upon  the  eternal  rock  of  character. 

We  build  to-day  upon  a  larger  plan, 

The  coining  man. 

The  ancient  race  to  higher  outlook  strides, 
On  broader  seas  our  ship  at  anchor  rides. 

The  age's  fashion 
Still  clothes  afresh  Truth's  fair  ideal, 

And  each  great  aim  made  real 
Lifts  faith  and  work  to  loftier  heights  of  passion. 

Nor  we,  mayhap,  may  grasp  the  span 

Of  our  last  harvesting;  the  seed 
To  crown  the  future  with  exalted  deed 
Not  yet  is  sifted  by  Time's  winnowing-fan. 

Haply  the  poet's  dream  shall  hold, 

And  nature's  age  of  gold 
Complete  the  cycle  of  humanity. 

When  the  full  time  is  ripe, 

Is  born  the  perfect  type  ; 
God's  plan  evolves  the  race  that  is  to  be 

When  all  the  soul-activities  are  free, 
And  life's  full  chord  is  perfect  harmony. 

But  while  the  generations  fall  asleep, 

Sow  the  good  seed  ye  reap. 
Build  on  the  old  foundation,  firm  and  sure, 

The  virtues  that  endure. 
Revere  the  ancient  rule 

Of  church  and  school. 
Lift  the  proud  pile  by  each  well-tempered  tool. 

And  though  to  vast  expansions  grown, 

Integrity  be  still  the  corner-stone  ; 

Honor  and  purity  alone 
Rear  its  proportions  true  ; 

While  faith  shall  round  the  dome 
Up  to  the  spheric  blue; 


RELATION  OF  SCHOOL    TO   CITIZENSHIP     121 

There  strong-winged  Hope  shall  fly 
Through  widening  arcs  of  love's  refulgent  sky. 
In  that  grand  temple  all  our  growing  race 
Shall  gather  face  to  face 
In  their  eternal  home ; 
For  Thou,  O  Lord,  hast  been  our  dwelling-place. 


THE   SCHOOL  CURRICULUM 


ADDRESS  BEFORE    THE    WOMAN'S  EDUCATION 
ASSOCIA  TION 


THE  community  exists  for  the  nurture  of  the 
coming  generation,  as  well  as  for  the  safety  and 
prosperity  of  the  present  generation.  In  fact,  as 
the  primal  object  of  all  our  social  institutions  is 
the  well-being  of  the  family  and  the  best  interests 
of  the  growing  race,  nothing  concerns  it  more 
nearly  than  the  right  conditions  and  relations  of 
the  child.  The  schools,  therefore,  as  the  chief 
means  of  child  nurture  and  training,  are  the  most 
vital  concerns  of  the  community. 

I  might  speak  of  the  necessity  for  wise  legisla- 
tion in  respect  to  public  education  in  all  its  admin- 
istrative functions,  for  a  judicious  and  enlightened 
guidance  of  all  its  details  of  policy,  and  for  a  gen- 
erous provision  for  all  the  material  conditions  of 
school-work,  —  such  as  ample  buildings,  pleasant 
playgrounds,  well-appointed  apparatus,  books,  tools, 
cabinets  and  museums,  laboratories,  gymnasiums, 
gardens,  —  liberal  compensation  for  teachers,  for 


THE  SCHOOL   CURRICULUM  123 

that  regulates  the  quality  of  the  teacher,  who  is 
to  be  a  greater  factor  in  the  formative  influences 
for  the  child  than  perhaps  any  other.  "Mark 
Hopkins  on  one  end  of  a  bench  and  my  boy  on 
the  other,"  said  President  Garfield,  for  it  is  the 
personal  quality  in  teaching  and  the  individual 
contact  which  tells.  But  I  have  chosen  at  this 
time  to  present  especially  for  your  attention  the 
school  curriculum ;  because  it  has  been  the  sub- 
ject of  my  careful  consideration  as  supervisor  in 
the  revision  called  for  by  the  school  committee 
during  the  past  year.  Every  subject  of  study, 
from  the  kindergarten  throughout  the  whole 
course,  has  been  discussed  under  the  focussed 
light  of  its  essential  and  related  values  as  an  ele- 
ment in  the  growth  and  efficiency  of  our  educa- 
tional methods  and  results. 

There  has  been  a  very  radical  change  in  the 
course  and  methods  of  school-work  during  the 
last  ten  years.  The  old  idea  that  school  educa- 
tion was  primarily  for  the  purpose  of  stocking  the 
child's  mind  with  facts  and  rules  has  passed  away, 
and  the  new  idea  that  its  purpose  is  the  develop- 
ment of  all  the  child's  powers  has  been  brought 
to  the  front.  We  study  the  natural  activities  of 
the  child,  and  then  seek  to  strengthen  and  har- 
monize them  by  exercise  ;  we  offer  as  subjects  of 
exercise  the  material  things  and  processes  about 
him,  —  minerals,  plants,  animals,  and  natural  phe- 


124     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

nomena  with  which  he  is  familiar ;  we  prescribe 
for  him  constant  practice  in  the  observation 
of  these  subjects,  with  experimental  investigation 
in  the  plane  of  his  intelligence,  curiosity,  and 
desire.  We  teach  him  reading,  spelling,  writing, 
grammar,  and  arithmetic ;  not  as  ends  of  study, 
but  as  means  of  study ;  not  as  facts,  but  as  meth- 
ods of  exercising  his  growing  powers.  We  must 
put  language,  reading,  spelling,  grammar,  and 
writing  into  his  school-work,  because  they  are  to 
be  his  tools.  He  must  learn  to  use  them  because 
they  enlarge  his  sources  of  study  and  growth ; 
they  increase  his  power  of  expression  and  com- 
munication; they  open  for  him  doors  to  the  great 
world  of  discoveries  and  activities  within  his 
growing  reach.  The  greater  his  facility  in  using 
these  tools,  the  wider  his  opportunity  of  growth, 
and  the  more  complex  his  relations  with  nature 
and  with  man.  We  must  so  provide  for  the 
child's  development  as  that  it  shall  be  in  the 
natural  order  of  his  activities ;  the  exercise  of 
the  senses  and  observational  powers,  the  satisfac- 
tion of  his  mental  curiosity,  the  training  of  the 
memory,  of  the  imagination,  of  the  power  of 
comparing,  arranging,  and  grouping  the  knowl- 
edge he  acquires  through  the  exercise  of  the 
senses,  of  the  inductive  powers,  the  reasoning 
faculty,  the  taste  and  sense  for  beauty  and  har- 
mony, the  desire  for  expression  and  communica- 


THE  SCHOOL   CURRICULUM  125 

tion,  the  constructive  instinct,  the  social  instinct, 
the  religious  instinct :  All  these  must  be  exer- 
cised and  developed  symmetrically  by  the  courses 
of  study  in  our  schools ;  for  they  are  the  natural 
powers  and  activities  of  the  human  being,  and 
quite  as  imperative  in  their  demands  upon  educa- 
tive methods  in  youth  as  in  maturity. 

It  is  plain  that  too  much  time  must  not  be  given 
to  the  mere  practice  in  the  handling  of  the  tools 
and  the  construction  of  the  scaffolding  of  the 
beautiful  temple  of  education.  To  study  the  al- 
phabet, spelling  by  syllables  and  words,  memoriz- 
ing the  dictionary  definitions  of  words,  to  drill  on 
phonic  elements  without  attention  to  the  real 
significance  of  the  word  studied,  or  without  the 
natural  need  of  the  word  at  all  for  purposes  of 
expression,  is  wasting  time  on  the  merely  mechan- 
ical appliances  of  education.  To  recite  from 
verbal  memory,  like  a  parrot,  to  learn  by  rote,  to 
study  arbitrary  rules,  statistics,  and  useless  facts 
about  which  there  is  no  aroused  interest,  is  to  de- 
grade the  mental  power,  and  make  the  process  of 
learning  stultifying  to  the  child's  whole  nature. 
The  practice  in  using  such  tools  as  reading,  writ- 
ing, number,  drawing,  must  be  in  obedience  to  a 
felt  want  for  such  practice,  aroused  by  a  wholesome 
curiosity  and  joy  in  the  activity  of  the  natural 
powers.  How  easily  and  naturally  will  language, 
reading,  writing,  spelling,  and  such  processes  of 


126     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

embodying  and  interpreting  thought  and  exercis- 
ing the  mind  be  acquired,  when  the  facts  of  knowl- 
edge they  express  have  been  discoveries  of  the 
senses  and  respond  to  ideals  of  the  imagination  ! 
Let  the  words  be  names  of  things  that  the  pupils 
see  and  handle  ;  let  the  sentences  be  expressions 
of  their  own  observation,  thought,  or  imagination ; 
let  the  spelling  and  writing  be  acquired  in  the 
effort  to  record  accurately  their  original  discoveries 
or  ideals,  and  for  the  purpose  of  communication  for 
sympathy  and  help  ;  and  the  practice  will  be  pleas- 
urable and  successful,  the  whole  threefold  nature 
of  the  child  will  enter  into  the  work,  and  the  im- 
pressions stored  up  will  be  more  permanent,  as 
well  as  more  quickly  made. 

At  the  same  time  that  these  old-fashioned  tools 
of  thought  and  expression  are  kept  in  active  oper- 
ation by  the  studies  we  have  named,  —  reading, 
spelling,  language,  writing,  —  the  study  of  number 
by  concrete  objects  and  combinations,  by  the  solu- 
tion of  problems  of  actual  experience,  by  group- 
ing and  classifying  objects  which  can  be  handled 
and  exchanged  with  each  other,  by  experiments  of 
counting  singly  or  by  recognized  groups,  or  by 
processes  which  can  be  applied  naturally  at  the 
suggestion  of  individual  needs,  must  be  carried 
forward  also.  Let  number  be  practised  by  these 
means,  and  it  is  a  most  important  tool  in  the 
equipment  for  mental  activity  and  happy  growth 


THE  SCHOOL    CURRICULUM  I2/ 

of  power  and  self-mastery.  The  ability  to  meet 
greater  and  greater  resistances  and  overcome  them 
is  obtained  from  the  study  of  number ;  the  reason- 
ing faculty  is  very  much  strengthened  if  the  study 
is  rightly  applied,  and  the  study  of  measurements 
is  incidental  and  valuable  as  an  additional  furnish- 
ing to  the  range  of  mental  growth.  In  this  con- 
nection the  practice  with  tools  of  measurement, — 
the  rule,  the  plumb-line,  the  scale  and  balance,  the 
measures  of  quantity,  of  form,  of  time,  of  direc- 
tion, of  temperature,  may  all  be  studied  and  used 
in  such  a  way  as  to  give  zest  and  actuality  to  all 
the  work  in  number.  The  apparatus  or  mechani- 
cal tools  used  may  be  the  rule  of  distance,  — inch, 
foot,  and  yard  measure;  the  gill,  pint,  quart, 
peck,  bushel,  gauges  of  quantity;  the  ounce, 
the  pound,  etc.,  gauges  of  weight ;  the  plumb-line, 
tfcte  compass,  the  divided  circle,  the  try-square,  the 
scissors,  needle,  and  knife,  the  pendulum,  the 
clock,  the  thermometer,  the  dial,  the  dividers; 
all  these  tools  are  eagerly  handled  by  the  pupil, 
to  give  actuality  to  his  number-work,  and  make  a 
concrete  presentation  of  his  mathematical  calcu- 
lations. How  many  of  those  who  glibly  recite 
the  tables  of  measurement  have  any  tangible  con- 
ception of  the  facts  they  represent  ?  How  many 
know  an  acre  of  land  approximately,  or  a  ton  of 
coal,  or  even  a  peck  of  meal,  at  sight  ?  How  many 
can  recognize  a  square  except  as  a  drawing,  or 


128     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

know  how  to  make  a  circle  or  a  hexagon  ?  A 
great  deal  of  ciphering  is  done  in  schools  of  the 
old  type  which  means  absolutely  nothing  to  the 
pupil  ;  it  is  simply  a  mass  of  figures  combined 
according  to  arbitrary  direction,  and  standing  for 
no  actual  value  in  his  experience.  Now  we  pro- 
pose to  connect  every  process  with  life.  Let  the 
child  see  and  handle,  measure  and  experiment, 
discover  his  process,  make  his  rule,  apply  his 
knowledge,  or  gain  it  by  his  own  powers  of  ob- 
serving and  doing.  In  this  way  it  enters  into  his 
mind-growth  ;  it  becomes  organic. 

These  methods  of  learning  give  constant  delight. 
How  truly  they  accord  with  the  natural  impulses 
of  the  child,  every  mother  will  bear  witness.  The 
day  has  dawned  when  we  condescend  to  learn 
methods  of  education  from  nature ;  we  no  longer 
repress  the  natural  energies ;  we  establish  condi- 
tions of  freedom  rather  than  limitation.  The  kin- 
dergarten gives  us  the  model,  and  as  we  have  placed 
it  at  the  foundation  of  our  school-system,  we  must 
build  upon  it  according  to  its  ideals.  It  is  learn- 
ing by  observation  and  experiment ;  it  provides 
the  child  with  material  and  tools,  and  encourages 
him  to  use  them  to  construct,  to  design,  to  demon- 
strate, to  embody  his  concepts.  The  old  tools  — 
the  pen,  the  pencil,  the  book,  and  the  map — may 
continue ;  but  he  must  use  the  pen  to  express  his 
thought,  the  pencil  to  draw  his  ideal,  the  book  to 


THE  SCHOOL    CURRICULUM  1 29 

complete  his  observation  and  give  him  practice  in 
this  tool  of  language,  and  the  globe  to  vivify  and 
express  the  shape  and  detail  of  the  earth.  He  must 
make  his  own  maps  and  define  his  knowledge  of 
contour  and  relief  by  modelling  in  clay,  by  drawing 
in  contour  or  elevation  representations  of  the  sur- 
face he  makes  in  clay ;  he  must  go  out  and  study 
real  forms  of  geography ;  he  must  pour  water  over 
his  clay  surface  to  discover  the  laws  of  drainage, 
to  know  and  represent  rivers,  lakes,  seas,  gulfs, 
islands,  peninsulas,  capes,  isthmus,  and  continent. 
If  he  studies  history,  let  him  represent  its  facts  as 
far  as  possible.  Does  he  study  the  early  history  of 
this  country  ?  let  him  construct  miniature  wig- 
wams, dress  dolls  as  Indians,  make  little  canoes, 
snow-shoes,  set  up  an  Indian  village,  and  draw  what 
he  has  not  the  material  to  construct ;  let  him  make 
historical  maps,  tables  of  statistics,  and  learn  to 
read  the  language  of  charts  and  constructive  draw- 
ings. Does  this  sound  like  overtaxing  the  child  ? 
Nature  will  deny  the  charge ;  and  experience, 
already  reached  in  some  schools,  will  gainsay  you. 
The  laboratory  method  in  physics  and  chemistry, 
in  astronomy,  geology,  botany,  and  biology,  is  now 
beyond  challenge ;  the  learning  by  doing,  estab- 
lished by  Froebel,  is  also  now  beyond  challenge ; 
thus  the  two  extremes  of  our  school-courses  have 
settled  the  question.  How  long  shall  we  delay  their 
connection  throughout  the  grades  of  school-work  ? 


130     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEIV  EDUCATION 

The  time  has  come,  we  believe,  to  unify  and  inter- 
relate all  our  work,  both  in  subject  and  method ; 
and  on  this  doctrine  we  have  remodelled  our  course 
of  study  in  the  Boston  schools  -as  far  as  at  present 
practicable.  We  have  endeavored  to  adjust  our 
means  to  our  end,  —  the  great  end  of  all  educa- 
tion, —  the  development  of  power,  the  determinate 
and  symmetrical  growth  of  the  child-nature  in  all 
its  relations  to  nature,  to  man,  and  to  God.  Begin- 
ning with  the  primary  schools,  we  carry  up  the 
kindergarten  plan  in  physical  training,  by  free  play 
as  well  as  by  systematic  exercises,  according  to  the 
Ling  system  given  by  a  daily  programme.  We 
introduce  observation-lessons  on  color,  form,  size, 
and  qualities  of  objects  related  to  and  illustrated 
by  kindergarten  methods  of  mannal  training  ;  viz., 
clay-modelling,  paper  folding  and  cutting,  sewing, 
stick-laying,  and  drawing ;  these  are  all  made  to 
give  observation  in  form  and  color  with  study  of 
type-forms  and  of  nature  in  plant  and  animal  life. 
The  observation  of  the  parts  of  the  human  body, 
and  simple  directions  as  to  dress  and  food,  cleanli- 
ness and  physical  habits,  is  a  part  of  this  course. 

Design  and  color  accompany  all  the  exercises  in 
form.  Light  cardboard  constructive  work  for  use 
or  beauty,  or  for  illustration  of  form  or  models  of 
apparatus  in  physics,  is  named  in  the  upper  pri- 
mary grade,  and  in  some  of  our  schools  simple 
slojd-work  with  the  knife  is  allowed,  and  shown  to 


THE  SCHOOL    CURRICULUM  131 

be  practicable  and  educative  as  well  as  recreative. 
The  drawing  must  express  the  meaning  and  be  a 
statement  of  facts,  as  well  as  graphic  illustration  of 
observed  or  imagined  objects  and  processes,  or 
of  designs  of  symmetry  based  upon  natural  forms 
of  beauty.  Through  all  these  exercises  the  child 
learns  form,  color,  the  elements  of  science  and  art, 
and  constantly  exercises  his  perceptive  and  crea- 
tive faculties.  We  connect  all  this  work  with  lan- 
guage by  accustoming  the  child  to  express  himself 
in  simple  and  correct  forms  of  speech,  in  relating 
what  he  sees,  describing  what  he  does,  recording 
his  results,  and  reading  his  own  and  others'  records, 
both  printed  and  written.  "  The  pupils  must  be 
so  guided,"  says  our  printed  manual,  "as  gradually 
to  gain  the  power  for  themselves  of  making  out 
the  words  of  a  sentence  and  getting  its  thought." 
We  give  the  children  varied  and  interesting  books 
by  good  authors  to  use  in  the  schoolroom.  Would 
that  all  the  job  text-books  and  primers  belonging 
to  a  past  generation  were  abolished,  and  the  child 
wholly  set  to  learning  to  read  by  reading,  and 
learning  to  write  by  writing,  and  learning  to  spell 
by  spelling,  where  alone  he  ever  needs  to  spell,  in 
actual  writing  of  his  thought.  We  lead  the  child 
to  right  modes  of  expression  and  right  enunciation 
and  inflection  in  reading,  not  by  rules  and  accents, 
but  by  calling  upon  his  inspiration  as  he  tells  us 
the  story  and  makes  it  real. 


132     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

Number  in  the  primary  school  is  wholly  con- 
crete ;  all  sorts  of  objects  furnished  by  the  nature- 
study,  by  the  form  and  color  study,  or  by  any 
material  of  play  or  work,  may  be  utilized  constantly 
for  practice  in  number.  The  common  apparatus 
or  tools  of  measurement  should  be  given  to  the 
child  in  connection  with  number  and  form  ;  he 
should  learn  by  actual  experiment  the  methods 
and  standards  of  measuring  form,  quantity,  weight, 
distance,  direction,  and  time.  He  should  learn 
parts  of  numbers  by  dividing  whole  objects,  and  by 
distributing  shares  of  things ;  he  should  learn 
United  States  money  by  playing  trade  and  hand- 
ling a  toy  currency.  In  short,  he  should  learn 
and  have  an  actual  appreciation  of  values  and 
counting  by  the  decimal  system,  of  things  weighed 
and  measured,  of  standards  and  units  as  well  as 
fractions  for  computation.  Tftus  in  the  lowest 
primary  class  the  course  of  study  names  "coins 
from  one  to  ten  cents,  inclusive.  Pint,  quart, 
inch."  In  the  next  class,  "coins  continued,  pint, 
quart,  gallon,  inch,  foot,  yard,  peck,  bushel,  day, 
week,  month,  year ; "  and  in  the  highest  class, 
"coins  continued,  quart,  peck,  bushel,  inch,  foot, 
yard,  second,  minute,  hour,  day,  week,  year,  ounce, 
pound."  Of  course  this  means  that  the  child  shall 
actually  handle  and  use  this  apparatus  of  measure, 
compute  by  actual  experiment  with  the  appropri- 
ate material  in  every  kind  of  measure,  and  learn 


THE  SCHOOL   CURRICULUM  133 

all  these  applications  of  number  by  observation  and 
experiment. 

So,  in  all  the  school-work  thus  far,  have  we 
aimed  to  actualize  the  knowledge  gained ;  to  make 
learning  a  discovery  by  the  child's  natural  activi- 
ties ;  to  connect  the  child  with  his  environment, 
and  prepare  him  for  his  growing  relations.  We 
have  ordered  a  natural,  healthy,  and  happy  exercise 
of  the  physical,  mental,  and  moral  powers  ;  we  have 
mortised  the  kindergarten  more  or  less  completely 
with  the  primary  school ;  we  have  made  education 
for  the  little  child  a  logical  sequence  of  subject 
and  method,  and  attempted  an  harmonious  expan- 
sion and  application  of  the  natural  methods  of 
training  the  whole  child.  What  have  we  done  in 
the  grammar-school  course  ? 

We  have  set  a  well-organized  and  well-directed 
system  of  physical  training  in  active  operation  for 
every  day  and  for  every  grade.  We  have  arranged 
a  scheme  of  natural-science  study  by  observation 
and  experiment,  which  is  progressive,  harmoni- 
ous, and  inclusive.  The  grammar-school  course  of 
study  introduces  this  department  by  the  following 
argument :  — 

"  The  purpose  and  method  of  the  grammar- 
school  work  in  elementary  science  are  largely 
coincident  with  the  purpose  and  method  of  the 
observation  lessons  in  the  primary  schools.  The 
purpose  is  to  train  the  senses  and  the  intellect- 


134     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ual  faculties  in  their  natural  order  of  develop- 
ment ;  to  form  scientific  habits  of  study,  and  to 
acquire  such  knowledge  as  will  incite  to  further 
and  more  systematic  study  of  the  natural  sciences; 
to  build  up  the  moral  nature ;  and  to  lay  the  foun- 
dation of  a  well-rounded  and  practical  education. 
The  method  from  first  to  last  is  observation,  ex- 
periment, and  induction,  with  some  form  of  expres- 
sion—  oral,  graphic,  or  constructive  —  which  shall 
complete  and  communicate  the  results  of  the 
work. 

"  The  right  study  of  elementary  science,  at  every 
stage  of  its  progress,  trains  the  mind  by  exercis- 
ing the  faculties  of  analysis,  comparison,  judg- 
ment, and  taste,  as  well  as  the  other  mental  activi- 
ties. This  study  should  nourish  the  moral  nature 
by  creating  a  habit  of  sympathy  and  communion 
with  nature  ;  by  arousing  a  love  for  beauty  and 
symmetry  of  form,  and  by  revealing  the  design 
and  adaptation  of  structure  in  plant  and  animal 
life ;  by  instilling  a  tenderness  for  lower  forms, 
and  reverence  for  higher  forms  of  being;  by 
leading  to  a  recognition  of  responsibility  to  law  as 
manifested  in  natural  phenomena,  and  of  the 
power  of  habit  as  displayed  in  the  structural 
growth  of  plant  and  animal  life ;  by  applying  the 
laws  of  physical  growth  to  mental  and  moral 
growth  ;  by  fostering  an  appreciation  of  the  mu- 
tual helpfulness  of  all  departments  of  nature  and 


THE  SCHOOL    CURRICULUM  135 

an  apprehension  of  the  providence  and  fatherhood 
of  the  Creator  as  shown  in  the  life  of  nature." 

The  course  includes  a  progressive  line  of  physi- 
ology and  hygiene,  lessons  on  minerals,  plants, 
animals,  and  phenomena  of  nature,  and  in  physics 
as  learned  from  observation  and  experiment.  A 
note  in  the  last  year  of  the  grammar-school  course 
says,  "  Pupils  should  observe  and  express  the  facts 
and  make  their  own  inferences.  Thus  a  keen 
interest  may  be  excited  and  the  best  of  mental 
training  secured ;  a  training  in  the  practice  of  close 
observation,  in  careful  thinking,  and  in  accurate 
description."  The  course  in  elementary  science  is 
supplemented  by  a  partial  course  in  manual  train- 
ing, introduced  by  the  following  statement :  — 

"  The  relation  of  Manual  Training  to  the  study 
of  Elementary  Science  is  intimate  and  essential. 
Moreover,  the  relation  of  both  to  other  depart- 
ments of  school-work  —  especially  to  language, 
geography,  and  drawing  —  is  so  close  as  to  result 
in  mutual  helpfulness  and  in  economy  of  time  and 
effort. 

The  exercises  in  manual  training  are  a  means 
not  only  of  physical  and  intellectual,  but  also  of 
moral  culture.  They  train  to  habits  of  accuracy, 
neatness,  order,  and  thoroughness ;  they  make 
a  helpful  occupation  for  otherwise  unemployed 
time,  or  a  relaxation  from  less  pleasurable  work ; 
they  present  an  incentive  to  good  work  in  all  di- 


136     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

rections ;  and  offer  at  all  times  and  in  all  connec- 
tions a  moral  stimulus  and  preparation  for  useful- 
ness at  home  and  in  the  community." 

This  course  mentions  sewing,  light  tool-work  in 
wood  or  cardboard,  clay-modelling,  cookery,  car- 
pentry, dress-draughting  and  cutting.  Drawing 
is  carried  through  every  grade  of  the  grammar 
school,  under  the  general  oversight  of  a  special 
director,  and  includes  model  and  object  drawing, 
drawing  from  memory,  design,  historic  ornament, 
free-hand,  and  instrumental  drawing.  The  ele- 
mentary science  lessons  are  still  indicated  as 
material  for  language  work,  oral  and  written ; 
the  reading  tends  more  and  more  to  the  literary 
motive ;  geography  and  language  are  connected  with 
the  nature  lessons  at  every  stage,  and  history  is 
used  as  material  for  reading  and  written  exercises. 
Oral  or  written  reproduction  of  reading  matter  is 
carried  along  all  the  way  ;  poems  and  gems  of  liter- 
ature are  studied  and  memorized ;  art  is  suggested 
as  a  subject  of  research  ;  and  methods  of  research 
and  illustration  in  geography  and  history  are  em- 
phasized as  the  grammar-school  course  proceeds. 
The  dictionary,  the  encyclopaedia,  the  atlas,  the 
chart,  each  becomes  a  tool  in  the  hands  of  the 
pupil,  and  he  must  acquire  facility  in  the  use  of 
each,  and  know  how  to  reach  and  use  all  sources 
of  information  ;  he  learns  to  compare,  to  arrange, 
and  to  generalize,  so  as  to  acquire  scientific  habits 


THE  SCHOOL    CURRICULUM  137 

of  study,  and  make  himself  master  of  his  material 
as  well  as  his  tools ;  he  begins  to  perceive  the  con- 
nections of  every  branch  of  study;  he  learns  some- 
thing of  the  unity  and  harmony  of  the  universe, 
and  opens  the  avenue  to  his  highest  opportunity  of 
inspiration. 

The  study  of  geography  is  made  very  real,  pro- 
gressive, inclusive,  and  widely  related.  It  begins 
not,  as  once,  with  definitions  and  impossible  concep- 
tions, but  takes  the  child  just  where  he  is  on  God's 
earth,  and  bids  him  look  around.  Study  of  natural 
features  by  real  geographical  forms;  use  of  the 
compass ;  drawing  a  plan  of  the  school-house,  of 
the  vicinity ;  modelling  forms  and  surfaces  ob- 
served, drawing  of  such  forms ;  making  collec- 
tions of  natural  productions ;  reading  interesting 
geographical  stories,  travels,  descriptions,  pictures, 
oral  and  written  accounts  of  places  seen ;  study  of 
our  own  town,  city,  and  country  ;  observation  of 
movements  of  sun,  moon,  and  stars,  their  rising 
and  setting,  heat  of  the  sun's  rays,  length  and 
direction  of  shadows,  weather,  wind,  and  seasons, 
sun's  place  at  noon  in  different  seasons  ;  study  of 
physical  and  commercial  geography  in  close  rela- 
tion to  study  of  minerals,  plants,  animals,  and 
natural  phenomena ;  historic  places  described,  the 
logical  connection  of  geography  and  history  made 
plain,  stereoscopic  views  and  photographs  of  geo- 
graphical and  historical  scenes,  with  constant  read- 


138     THE  SPIRIT  OF    THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ing  and  research ;  these  are  our  modern  methods 
as  laid  down  in  our  revised  course  of  study.  Civil 
government  of  our  own  country  is  the  finishing 
touch  to  this  course,  and  involves  a  constant  and 
enlightening  inculcation  of  patriotism. 

In  arithmetic  the  concrete  method  is  still  pur- 
sued :  the  units  of  measurement  are  still  studied 
experimentally,  and  fractions  with  concrete  illustra- 
tion. Concrete  problems,  mensuration  of  solids, 
and  practical  book-keeping  complete  the  arithmet- 
ical course.  We  have  not  yet  made  it  what  it 
should  be.  We  should  take  practical  geometry  and 
some  algebraic  method  into  our  number-work  in 
the  grammar  schools,  in  the  solution  of  problems 
too  clumsily  done  by  arithmetic,  and  as  a  more 
concrete  presentation  of  mensuration  of  solids,  and 
of  square  and  cube  root.  Almost  every  logical 
teacher  adopts  these  methods,  and  they  should  be 
laid  down. 

But  so  far  our  revised  course  shows  a  clear 
escape  from  the  old  rote  methods.  We  have  incor- 
porated the  live,  active,  and  experimental  methods, 
the  constructive  methods,  the  natural  methods, 
the  manual-training  methods,  and  given  freedom 
to  the  child  in  all  his  activities.  Music  is  a  part 
of  his  training,  from  first  to  last,  and  is  not  only  a 
vocal  and  musical  training,  but,  as  at  present 
administered,  a  very  close  and  certain  mental 
training.  It  is  wonderful  to  find  how  the  voice 


THE  SCHOOL   CURRICULUM  139 

obeys  the  mental  image,  and  how  exact  the  mental 
image  of  tone  may  become  in  a  child.  Our  chil- 
dren graduate  from  the  grammar  school  able  to 
read  and  sing  any  music  of  common  degree  of  dif- 
ficulty, any  part  in  a  part-song,  or  to  transpose, 
either  on  paper  or  by  voice,  any  plain  air  to  any 
key,  and  to  recognize  and  give  at  command  any 
note  in  the  scale.  It  is  easy  to  see  that  we  have 
struck  out  far  away  from  the  plan  of  committing 
to  memory  the  words  of  a  text-book  as  our  only 
means  of  education  ;  we  are  in  the  beginning  of 
a  manual-training  era,  for  manual  training  is  a 
method  of  education,  not  a  specialty  of  education. 
It  treats  the  child  in  his  relations,  in  his  threefold 
unity  ;  it  connects  him  directly  with  nature  in  his 
observation  of  nature  ;  it  connects  him  with  man 
in  the  relations  of  nature  to  human  life,  and  in 
making  him  creative,  and  therefore  helpful  to 
humanity ;  and  in  both  these  directions  of  activity 
and  growth,  through  every  step  of  his  path  amid 
the  realms  of  nature  and  man,  it  connects  him  with 
God  as  the  Creator  and  Father  of  Life,  and  as  the 
constant  inspiration  of  his  conscious  existence. 

In  the  high-school  courses  we  have  not  yet 
attained,  we  have  barely  suggested,  new  lines  of 
work.  The  Manual-Training  High  School  for  boys 
—  to  be  called  the  Mechanic  Arts  High  School  — 
should  be  arranged  for  girls  as  well  as  boys,  and 
have  a  course  of  domestic  science  and  domestic 


140     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

arts.  There  should  be  a  greater  number  of  elec- 
tive courses  in  the  high  schools,  that  greater  indi- 
vidualization  of  education  may  be  possible.  There 
should  be  partial  courses  and  greater  elasticity 
in  all  courses  as  to  time  and  direction  of  work. 
Art  and  literature  should  be  more  completely  open 
as  special  courses.  The  zoological,  botanical,  and 
mineralogical  laboratories  should  be  much  better 
equipped.  A  biological  department  should  be 
placed  in  the  high  or  normal  school,  and  freer 
specialization  instituted.  Psychology  should  be 
studied  in  the  high  schools  as  well  as  in  the  nor- 
mal school.  But  the  high  schools  will  be  the 
last  to  move,  as  they  have  been  established  so 
firmly  on  the  old  academic  ideal.  Some  day  the 
whole  course  of  study  in  the  public  schools  will 
look  symmetrical ;  one  purpose  shall  prevail  through 
all  its  grades,  and  its  most  noble  feature  will  be  the 
thorough  interrelation  of  all  its  work.  The  con- 
stant building  up  of  character,  as  the  sum  of  all 
right  activities,  will,  after  all,  be  its  supreme  crown 
of  achievement,  and  nature's  verdict  on  the  quality 
of  our  ideal. 


THE    RELATION    OF    THE    SCHOOL 
TO    INDUSTRIAL    REFORMS 


ADDRESS  BEFORE    THE  SOCIAL  SCIENCE   CLUB 


THE  school  is  nearer  to  the  problems  of  the  day 
than  any  other  institution,  because  it  is  forming 
the  generation  which  continually  confronts  those 
problems,  and  must  set  itself  to  their  solution. 
The  school  is  all  the  time  storing  up  and  turning 
out  the  applied  power  of  humanity.  Brain-power, 
hand-power, — the  coming  man  and  woman, — 
these  are  the  product  of  that  daily  workshop  of 
the  human  being,  the  public  school.  The  stored- 
up  energy,  the  consolidated  power  and  ever-evolv- 
ing dynamic  force,  which  is  to  move  the  wheels  of 
the  future  is  generated  in  these  school-houses  that 
focus  the  humanity  of  our  towns  and  cities.  The 
schools  have  a  more  vital  work  to-day  than  in  the 
past.  We  see  the  urgent  need  of  a  living  con- 
nection between  the  growing  child  and  the  life 
about  him.  We  no  longer  want  mere  bookworms 
coming  out  of  our  schools,  but  live  boys  and  girls, 

141 


142     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

awake  at  every  pore,  —  quick  to  see,  quick  to  feel, 
quick  to  take  hold  of  the  great  needs  of  life. 
They  must  know  something ;  not  that  it  shall  be 
hidden  away  for  exclusive  use,  but  that  it  shall 
be  applied,  that  it  shall  help  somebody.  We 
want  power  to  think  and  power  to  do ;  power  to 
organize  and  power  to  act  under  organization ; 
power  to  lead  and  power  to  follow ;  for  one  is  the 
complement  of  the  other.  "  He  that  is  greatest 
among  you,  let  him  be  your  servant."  "He  that  is 
faithful  in  that  which  is  least  is  faithful  also  in 
much."  In  order  to  social  success  of  any  kind 
we  must  know  how  to  go  just  where  we  are 
wanted,  like  the  soldier  in  an  army  ;  for  although 
one  man  may  not  of  himself  be  able  to  accom- 
plish an  appreciable  part  of  the  work  of  the  world, 
yet  by  adding  his  force  and  knowledge  to  some 
well-directed  general  effort,  and  willingly  doing 
just  what  he  can  do,  just  where  it  is  wanted,  he 
may  accomplish  glorious  things. 

So  we  must  equip  our  children  for  concerted 
action,  for  participation  in  the  activities  of  the 
day,  for  helpfulness  in  practical  matters,  for  ready 
application  of  all  they  have  gained  in  training  or 
knowledge.  Let  them  learn  to  work  for  each 
other  as  well  as  with  each  other.  Establish  in 
the  schools  the  natural  relation  between  demand 
and  supply.  Let  the  suburban  classes  contribute 
from  their  wealth  of  plants,  flowers,  and  other 


INDUSTRIAL  REFORMS  143 

objects  of  nature  to  the  city  classes  who  have  no 
fields  and  gardens  at  their  command ;  let  the  city 
schools  send  products  more  easily  within  their 
reach  to  the  country  schools  for  their  cabinets 
and  museums.  Let  the  boys  in  the  school-shops 
make  utensils  for  the  girls  in  the  school-kitchens ; 
let  the  workers  at  slojd  make  convenient  objects 
for  the  use  of  the  classes  in  number  or  drawing  ; 
let  the  sewing-pupils  make  aprons  and  caps  for  the 
carpentry-pupils  and  for  the  cooking-pupils ;  let 
the  cookery-class  sometimes  prepare  a  lunch  for 
the  kindergarten,  and  let  all  dance  and  play  to- 
gether as  often  as  they  may,  for  it  is  in  our  recre- 
ations as  well  as  in  our  work  that  we  unconsciously 
exchange  our  advantages  and  meet  in  fraternal 
union  ;  and  in  all  these  mutual  activities  we  develop 
in  the  children  the  power  to  understand  each  other 
and  educate  them  to  social  and  political  harmony. 
And  in  all  this  community  of  effort  it  is  the 
manual  work  that  brings  the  children  closest  to- 
gether as  brothers  and  sisters,  especially  when 
every  piece  of  work  is  done  for  a  moral  end,  that 
of  helpful  association  with  others.  So  the  chil- 
dren must  be  taught  to  love  tangible  work ;  and 
what  child  does  not  ?  They  must  be  apt  in  apply- 
ing their  constructive  and  originative  powers  to 
the  material  around  them.  Connect  the  child  with 
his  material  of  activity  as  soon  as  possible ;  let 
him  know  the  nature,  qualities,  and  uses  of  that 


144     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

with  which  he  is  to  deal ;  let  him  learn  the  use  of 
common  tools  ;  show  him  the  secrets  of  matter, 
of  force,  of  processes,  and  laws  ;  let  him  study 
science  experimentally,  and  handle  intelligently 
this  earth-material;  try  what  he  can  do  with  it. 
Relate  him  to  the  industries  which  develop  all  the 
resources  of  our  surroundings  ;  make  him  master 
of  these  and  of  his  own  active  powers.  No  more 
laggards,  no  more  loafers,  no  more  slouching  at 
the  threshold  of  life.  The  student  must  investi- 
gate, reason,  and  execute;  he  must  think,  and 
communicate  his  thought ;  his  head  and  hands 
must  work  together  to  lead  him  to  the  conquest 
of  his  conditions.  We  make  the  child  familiar 
with  nature ;  for  all  subjects  of  thought  and  life 
spring  from  that  source,  and  all  return  to  it.  He 
must  know  about  the  soil,  and  about  the  products 
of  the  soil,  the  treasures  beneath  it,  and  their 
appliances  for  the  progress  of  man.  We  give 
him  tools,  the  key  to  all  trades,  and  training  in 
the  methods  of  dealing  with  all  material  for  the 
uses  of  society.  He  is  to  be  a  factor  in  the  build- 
ing of  society,  in  the  shaping  of  all  practical  inter- 
ests in  the  life  of  the  next  generation.  We  must 
start  him  where  he  can  choose  his  way,  not  by  the 
old  apprentice  system  which  made  him  the  victim 
of  his  parents'  choice,  the  slave  to  a  master,  and 
to  a  single  craft.  Greater  intelligence,  larger 
choice,  fuller  freedom,  the  times  demand.  We 


INDUSTRIAL  REFORMS  145 

must  be  equipped  for  any  journey,  for  every  strug- 
gle, for  all  relations,  if  we  would  be  neither  idlers 
nor  drudges,  if  we  would  be  sure  to  be  called  out 
to  achieve  something.  He  who  mixes  brains  with 
his  work  is  always  wanted  and  will  always  succeed. 
He  who  is  as  apt  with  hand  as  with  head  cannot 
be  confined  to  one  chance  in  life,  for  he  has  only 
to  adapt  his  skill  and  apply  his  power  to  the 
chance  that  arrives. 

We  are  becoming  a  cosmopolitan  people.  God 
is  sending  all  the  world  to  us  as  pupils  :  every 
mountain  and  hill  is  brought  low,  and  every  valley 
exalted  to  prepare  a  highway  for  the  nations. 
This  great  trust  we  must  meet  wisely  and  fear- 
lessly, feeling  that  all  men  are  brothers.  Let  no 
one  try  to  separate  race  from  race,  class  from  class, 
or  worker  from  worker  ;  for  all  are  workers  together 
with  God.  Service  is  the  only  nobility  among  free- 
men :  let  all  learn  the  elements  of  labor ;  this 
alone  will  help  in  the  social  equality  we  look  for ; 
but  no  equality  can  be  attained  while  the  worker 
is  a  mere  drudge.  You  nor  I  can  be  contented  to 
drudge  :  we  want  our  work  brought  up  to  the  level 
of  an  art  or  a  beneficence  ;  we  want  it  originative 
and  helpful ;  we  want  to  respect  ourselves  for 
doing  it,  and  respect  ourselves  in  doing  it.  If  we 
can  all  understand  the  conditions  of  the  worker,  we 
can  be  saved  from  many  sources  of  friction  and 
many  social  dangers.  I  blame  my  employee  be- 


146   THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

cause  I  cannot  appreciate  his  difficulties  :  when 
my  cook  leaves  me  and  I  have  to  go  into  her  place 
for  a  time  I  am  disposed  to  regard  her  short -com- 
ings with  greater  indulgence ;  I  begin  to  wonder 
how  she  got  along  so  well ;  I  learn  to  respect  her 
skill,  her  patience,  her  management.  When  the 
rich  man's  son  stands  at  the  bench  of  the  school- 
shop  by  the  side  of  the  poor  man's  son,  they 
learn  to  measure  each  other's  difficulties,  try  each 
other's  tools,  respect  each  other's  power  and  skill. 
Judgment  of  work,  analysis  of  plan  of  work,  criti- 
cal comparison  of  results,  are  proved  to  be  as 
arduous  as  the  mere  execution  of  detail.  The 
survival  of  the  fittest  becomes  the  law  :  the  chief 
must  rise  from  the  ranks  ;  the  head  must  be 
reached  through  the  hands  in  a  double  sense  ;  one 
must  know  the  whole  by  experience :  this  will 
make  society  more  just,  considerate,  and  forbear- 
ing either  way  ;  it  will  dignify  labor  and  establish 
human  brotherhood.  Genius  comes  from  all  races 
and  all  classes,  and  usually  manifests  itself  through 
contact  with  the  material  upon  which  it  spends  its 
power.  The  mere  theorist  will  not  be  able  to  con- 
vert dead  matter  into  active  force  ;  the  inventor 
has  handled  and  worked  with  the  stuff  he  glorifies 
into  wondrous  achievement. 

We  want  to  better  the  conditions  of  our  lives  ; 
we  are  all  anxious  to  rise  to  higher  planes  of 
thought,  feeling,  and  action ;  none  of  us  wishes 


INDUSTRIAL   REFORMS  Itf 

to  remain  a  clod  and  a  dullard ;  we  women  want 
to  understand  what  we  have  to  do  in  the  home, 
and  do  it  from  not  only  high  moral  and  affectional 
inspiration,  but  in  the  glow  of  applied  science,  of 
skilled  artisanship,  of  originative  power.  We 
must  understand  the  physical  laws  which  regulate 
all  our  apparatus  of  living, — laws  of  heat,  of  light, 
of  motion ;  we  must  see  through  the  problems 
upon  which  our  health  and  safety  depend  in  the 
home,  —  problems  of  ventilation,  of  drainage,  of 
sanitation,  of  applied  chemistry  in  all  departments 
of  domestic  science ;  we  shall  enjoy  the  experi- 
ments in  the  laboratory  of  the  kitchen,  in  the 
artistic  decorations  of  our  homes,  and  the  hygienic 
appointments  of  our  tables  and  our  clothing,  and 
lift  ourselves  above  being  mere  servants  of  the 
household  into  the  plane  of  educators  and  artists 
of  home  life.  We  shall  love  our  own  no  less  fondly 
when  we  work  for  them  intelligently,  and  be  none 
the  less  true  economists  for  the  family  because  we 
can  keep  accounts  and  know  our  legal  rights;  we 
can  even  present  nobler  sons  and  daughters  to  the 
commonwealth  when  we  have  studied  the  prob- 
lems of  life  actually  and  from  tangible  experiment, 
and  we  shall  be  able  to  contribute  to  the  adjust- 
ment of  social  difficulties  all  the  better  for-having 
studied  political  economy  with  you  our  comrades 
of  the  other  sex  at  the  ballot-box.  Believe  me, 
all  our  present  efforts  at  industrial  education  are 


148     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

in  the  interest  of  homes  that  shall  save  men  from 
vice,  society  from  disorder,  and  the  laborer  from 
despair.  The  knowing  of  some  trade,  aptness 
at  some  handwork,  the  ability  to  support  one's  self, 
to  do  something  well,  is  a  great  preventive  of 
crime.  Who  can  point  to  a  skilled  mechanic  of 
good  habits  of  life  and  of  available  health  whose 
family  are  beggars?  The  criminals  know  how  to 
do  nothing  certainly  and  systematically  ;  but  indi- 
vidual independence  and  mutual  helpfulness  are 
the  fruit  of  trained  hands  and  clear  heads. 

The  schools  are  now  working  for  better  regu- 
lated lives  and  more  beneficent  social  institutions  : 
the  fireside  rather  than  the  saloon,  skilled  labor 
and  shorter  hours  of  work,  intelligent  and  happy 
recreation ;  science  and  skill  mean  leisure  and 
self-improvement ;  good  character  is  the  result  of 
the  healthy  activity  of  body,  mind,  and  soul,  and 
places  man  or  woman  beyond  defeat,  making  them 
true  republicans. 

Systematic  labor,  work  for  a  purpose,  not  merely 
mechanical,  but  scientific  in  its  methods,  that  is 
the  aim  of  the  free  education  we  mean  to  bring 
into  the  schools. 


WOMAN'S   WORK   IN   EDUCATION 


TEACHERS'   CON- 


WOMAN'S  work  in  education  is  distinctive  ;  it 
differs  in  kind  from  that  of  man.  The  element 
of  sex  enters  into  the  constitution  of  mind,  and 
determines  the  sphere  and  quality  of  intellectual 
activity.  According  to  the  principle  of  the  con- 
tinuity of  law,  the  mental  and  moral  nature  is 
conditioned  by  sex  :  this  gives  limitations,  but  it 
also  gives  expansions.  We  have  been  too  apt  to 
look  at  the  limitations.  We  have  spoken  of  what 
the  mind  of  woman  lacks  of  the  mental  qualities 
of  man,  rather  than  what  it  supplies  to  man's 
mind:  for  one  is  the  complement  of  the  other; 
one  is  set  over  against  the  other  as  parallel,  recip- 
rocal, reactionary,  and  completing. 

Women  are  naturally  and  properly  offended  by 
a  crude,  low,  and  physical  statement  of  the  limi- 
tations of  sex  ;  the  outlines  of  their  physical  be- 
ing are  typical,  however,  and  indicate  the  plan  of 

149 


150     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

the  threefold  organism.  The  mind  and  soul  of 
woman  are  as  strongly  and  thoroughly  conditioned 
by  sex  as  the  body.  Science  has  as  yet  scarcely 
touched  the  question  of  the  mental  and  moral  dif- 
ference of  sex.  I  offer  a  slight  contribution  to 
the  analysis  of  that  difference,  and  to  its  indica- 
tions as  to  the  nature  of  woman's  educational 
work. 

Let  us  inquire  into  the  history  of  the  race  in 
this  respect,  for  race-history  is  but  the  expansion 
of  the  history  of  the  individual :  each  man  is  an 
epitome  of  the  race,  each  woman  is  represented 
by  the  woman  of  history.  Nature  (not  man,  not 
society,  not  environment,  not  tradition)  has  fixed 
the  lines  of  woman's  development,  and  moulded 
the  history  of  her  achievement. 

Woman  has  been  the  inspirer,  not  the  fulfiller, 
of  man's  work.  She  has  aroused  the  fervor  of 
thought  and  feeling  which  has  drawn  out  his 
powers  to  execution.  Woman  has  been  the  im- 
aginative, the  ideal  side  of  the  race.  Her  beauty, 
her  sympathy,  her  ideality,  her  faith,  have  nerved 
man  to  heroic  action  and  to  artistic  expression. 
For  Helen  was  the  long  Trojan  battle  waged  ;  for 
feminine  ideals  —  for  Venus  and  Psyche  and 
Juno — have  the  pencil  and  the  brush  portrayed 
beauty ;  for  Beatrice  has  Dante  sung ;  and  every 
poet  has  been  kindled  to  his  divinest  verse  by 
the  goddess  at  whose  shrine  he  worshipped,  his 


WOMAN'S    WORK  IN  EDUCATION  151 

one  adored,  beloved  among  women.  As  the  phys- 
ical beauty  and  grace  of  woman  have  drawn  man 
to  her  feet,  so  her  grace  of  thought,  her  beauty  of 
spirit,  have  inspired  his  noblest  efforts  ;  and  home, 
the  temple  in  which  she  ministers,  has  been  the 
lode-star  of  his  pilgrimage.  He  has  felt  the  har- 
mony of  her  being  until  it  filtered  through  his 
brain-cells  into  a  symphony  of  sweet  chords,  and 
expressed  itself  through  his  fingers  on  the  many- 
stringed  or  silver-throated  instrument  of  music. 
Woman  looks  into  the  mystical  unseen,  and  per- 
ceives its  meaning  and  its  reality ;  and  as  she  com- 
municates to  man  this  holy  faith,  he  gives  it  tan- 
gible shape,  and  puts  it  into  word  or  tone  or  color 
for  the  world  to  admire.  She  absorbs  beauty  and 
truth,  he  struggles  to  set  it  forth  ;  she  is  the 
dreamer,  he  the  worker.  She  is  provided  with  the 
sensitive,  he  with  the  muscular  tissue. 

There  are  two  sorts  of  intellectual  and  moral 
function  ;  viz.,  that  of  immediate  and  tangible 
expression,  and  that  of  structural  and  organic  in- 
building.  Both  these  functions  are  common  to 
the  sexes ;  but  the  first  is  the  supreme  function  of 
man,  the  second  the  supreme  function  of  woman. 
The  greatest  men  and  women  are  not  only 
stronger  in  their  distinctive  functions,  but  more 
fully  equipped  on  both  sides.  The  strong  man  is 
compact  of  manly  traits,  but  the  completest  man 
has  also  a  touch  of  the  womanly.  The  perfect 


I$2     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

woman  is  not  only  the  most  womanly  of  creatures, 
but  has  also  a  deep  reserve  of  native  courage  and 
strength.  The  merely  feminine  man  and  the 
merely  masculine  woman  are  abnormal  and  unin- 
teresting, if  not  repulsive.  If  woman  has  failed 
as  man's  competitor,  it  is  because  she  has  made 
the  mistake  of  trying  to  assume  functions  as 
supreme  which  nature  has  not  made  supreme  in 
her,  and  in  trying  to  subordinate  functions  which 
nature  intended  should  be  dominant :  we  speak  of 
intellectual  functions.  The  exercise  of  man's 
supreme  energy  of  mind  produces  concrete  works 
of  art,  science,  and  literature.  The  exercise  of 
woman's  supreme  energy  of  thought  and  feeling 
produces  cell,  nerve,  and  fibre  of  mind  and  soul : 
the  latter  is  the  transmissible  capital  of  intellect- 
ual and  moral  power ;  it  does  not  seek  to  expend, 
but  to  conserve  itself.  What  is  wholly  spent  is 
exhausted  :  it  is  largely  the  unexpresssed  genius 
of  one  generation  that  is  carried  over  to  the  next. 
It  is  the  repressed  energies  of  the  father  that  are 
worked  out  in  the  son.  The  poet  utters  in  verse 
what  his  son  puts  upon  the  canvas  ;  the  artist 
bequeaths  his  imagination  to  be  expressed  in  the 
musician's  language  of  harmonious  sound.  The 
man  of  action  sees  his  boy  burning  the  midnight 
oil  over  his  books,  and  the  mathematician  of  one 
generation  becomes  the  scientist  of  the  next. 
This  does  not  contradict  the  law  of  growth  by 


WOMAN'S    WORK  IN  EDUCATION  153 

exercise.  The  inward  faculty  gains  strength 
and  determinate  tendency,  but  seeks  new  chan- 
nels of  activity,  new  outlets  of  expression.  It  is 
not  without  design  that  woman's  mind  and  soul 
are  framed  for  unconscious  and  organic  activity 
rather  than  for  exhaustive  expression  ;  the  rich 
juices  of  her  being  are  stored  up  rather  than 
spent,  and  become  resources  for  the  fulness  of 
her  inspirational  office.  The  significance  of  this 
fact  is  in  its  indication  of  woman's  vocation. 

Do  we  complain  of  nature  ?  Is  it  less  honora- 
ble to  conserve  for  larger  uses  than  to  expend 
in  more  obvious  expression  ?  Nature  has  held 
woman  back  from  direct  accomplishment  which  is 
equal  or  superior  to  man's  in  science,  literature, 
and  art,  as  in  mechanical  realms,  because  it  or- 
dained her  for  indirect  agency  in  those  realms. 
Woman  has  not  represented  herself  by  a  Newton, 
a  Shakespeare,  a  Goethe,  a  Beethoven,  a  Raphael ; 
but  she  has,  by  unnoted  processes,  concentrated 
the  race-activities  for  transmission  and  vitalization  ; 
expressed  herself  more  by  an  atmosphere,  an  in- 
fluence, a  sympathy,  and  a  diffusive  grace  of  cul- 
ture, than  by  any  specific  acts ;  she  has  created 
the  sense  for  beauty  and  harmony  which  man 
applies  to  outward  form,  and  has  kept  alive  the 
Promethean  fires  of  humanity  by  the  operation 
of  her  structural  determination  of  mind-function. 
This  power  and  sex-faculty  does  not  win  the 


154     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

instant  applause  of  the  unthinking  world,  but  is  as 
worthy  as,  and  more  enduring  than,  that  which  does : 
it  pushes  the  race  upward  and  onward  ;  it  draws 
man  to  his  evolving  destiny ;  it  pervades  and 
exalts  humanity.  This  structural  determination 
of  woman's  mind  gives  her  quicker  intuition  than 
man.  A  woman  reaches  by  intuition  at  once 
what  a  man's  mind  slowly  attains  by  reason  and 
experience.  She  has  the  result  of  experience 
stored  up  in  her  brain-cells,  and  they  present  it 
automatically  as  the  fingers  of  the  musician 
instantly  strike  the  notes  which  are  painfully 
wrought  out  by  the  tyro.  This  intuitional  facility 
has  been  counted  a  lower  stage  of  mentality  by 
many ;  but  is  it  not  the  result  of  thoroughly  or- 
ganized thought, —  thought,  or  inherited  organic 
structure,  so  long  habituated  to  the  mind  as  to 
have  become  automatic,  unconscious,  organic  ? 
Processes  are  lost  sight  of,  axioms  take  the  place 
of  conscious  deduction  ;  it  is  the  sum  of  race- 
thinking  and  race-knowledge  ;  it  is  knowledge  and 
thought  packed  into  brain  and  mind  power.  Axi- 
oms and  intuitive  truths  mark  the  tide-line  of 
human  advance ;  they  show  us  where  the  steady 
inroad  of  human  ideas  has  graved  the  sands  of 
time.  This  intuitional  quality  of  woman's  mind 
makes  her  work  distinctive  in  kind.  Let  her  work 
by  faith  in  it,  not  in  distrust  of  it :  she  cannot  do 
her  best  work  in  the  line  of  man's  best  work ;  her 


WOMAN'S    WORK  IN  EDUCATION  155 

rights  and  privileges,  her  expansions  as  well  as 
her  limitations,  she  must  accept  from  nature ;  she 
must  hold  her  position,  not  as  inferior  to  her 
choice,  but  up  to  the  full  measure  of  human  oppor- 
tunity and  endowment ;  she  must  throw  herself 
into  sympathy  with  its  purpose  and  methods,  not 
struggle  against  them,  if  she  would  avail  herself 
of  all  its  power  ;  then  she  will  dignify  it  and  be 
dignified  by  it. 

But  although  the  most  obvious  end  of  this 
difference  of  sex  in  mind  relates  to  heredity,  yet 
as  a  direct  educational  force  it  is  constantly 
operative ;  it  does  not  preclude  acts  of  specific 
effort  at  constructive  or  creative  expression  of 
form  or  other  language.  Woman  is  by  no  means 
destitute  of  the  faculty  of  immediate  expression, 
or  ability  to  work  intellectually  as  man  works. 
The  sex  boasts  more  and  more  its  sculptors, 
dramatists,  poets,  painters,  and  musicians,  and 
even  makes  itself  felt  in  the  professions  formerly 
regarded  as  exclusively  man's.  She  must,  indeed, 
work  out  in  the  laboratory  of  modern  psychology 
much  that  is  to  surprise  even  herself,  and  confront 
men  with  new  championships ;  but  all  this  will 
discount  her  grand  results  if  it  be  not  alchemized 
by  the  distinctive  assimilation  of  sex,  and  added 
to  her  charm  and  power  as  woman.  The  femi- 
nine element  must  still  be  paramount,  and  absorb 
to  itself  the  wealth  of  new  channels  of  thought, 


I$6     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

new  germs  of  knowledge.  The  womanly  bent  of 
mind  applied  to  education  fits  one  for  that  kind  of 
work  which  we  may  call  nurture. 

Plato  set  forth  nurture  as  the  highest  form  of 
education  :  it  is  the  unfolding  of  the  whole  nature 
by  the  subtle  persuasiveness  of  a  personal  atmos- 
phere ;  the  unconscious  influence  of  culture  and 
character ;  the  crystallizing  forces  of  the  inclusive 
being  ;  the  harmony  which  flows  from  personality 
and  envelops  the  subject  of  educative  effort 
until  the  mind  and  soul  grow  as  flowers  bloom  in 
the  sunlight  and  air.  In  this  sphere  of  intuitional 
activity  are  born  the  ideals  of  true  education.  It 
is  the  stream  of  a  large  and  exalted  vitality  poured 
into  the  veins  of  the  learner,  and  its  value  is 
immeasurable.  It  makes  all  difference  to  the 
pupil  what  the  teacher  is,  how  related  to  divine 
and  infinite  realities,  how  free  a  medium  for  truth 
and  beauty  and  inspiration.  It  is  the  woman,  not 
the  method  or  even  the  philosophy,  which  educates, 
which  creates,  which  holds  the  balance  of  destiny. 
Paths  of  knowledge  may  be  explored  ;  culture  must 
become  perfect  by  aggregation  as  well  as  by 
growth  :  the  teacher  may  learn  and  teach  specifi- 
cally ;  but  above  and  through  all  must  work  her 
educational  power  as  a  woman,  that  with  which 
her  quality  of  mind  has  endowed  her,  the  uncon- 
scious, the  intuitional,  the  harmonizing  power  of 
nurture  ;  this  alone  makes  her  work  the  shapely, 
rounded,  perfect  pattern  it  is  meant  to  be. 


WOMAN'S    WORK  IN  EDUCATION          157 

Directly  in  the  channel  of  all  this  determination 
of  sex  is  the  finer  moral  sense,  nicer  perception, 
and  keener  sensitiveness  of  soul  in  woman  than  in 
man.  This  is  universally  acknowledged  as  charac- 
teristic of  her  sex,  and  makes  her  the  guide  and 
comforter  of  man.  Woman  also  has  an  accumu- 
lative energy,  a  dynamic  power  of  conservation, 
which  prepares  her  for  continuous  strain  of  suffer- 
ing, effort,  or  sympathy  ;  which  gives  her  faith  and 
patience  and  endurance  beyond  the  power  of  man, 
and  helps  her  to  do  without  the  vulgar  plaudit. 
It  is  she  who  sustains  and  comforts  the  dying, 
who  leads  gently  through  the  dark  valley  those  in 
whose  life  she  lives,  who  is  "first  at  the  cross  and 
earliest  at  the  grave,"  because  of  this  accumulative 
tendency  of  her  forces,  this  closer  contact  with 
eternal  reserves  of  strength,  this  unconscious, 
unselfish  absorption  in  the  helpful  activities  of  her 
nature.  She  can  better  do  without  the  audible, 
the  sudden  and  tangible  reward,  and  wait  for  the 
harvest  of  a  larger  sowing  ;  for  her  nature  tides 
over  the  constant  interruptions  of  time  and  phys- 
ical needs  by  the  flooding  waves  of  her  abounding 
spiritual  motive-power. 

To  this  end  is  woman  so  closely  connected  with 
the  next  generation,  that  nurture  may  be  complete. 
Her  work  in  education  begins  with  the  breath  of 
life,  is  unintermittent  and  affectional,  inspired  by 
the  very  essence  of  her  nature  as  woman ;  it  is  so 


\ 


158     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

truly  and  thoroughly  inspired  that  it  amounts  to  a 
revelation  ;  its  instinctive  methods  are  the  gospel 
of  education.  The  greatest  genius  of  modern  edu- 
cational science  acknowledged  this,  and  made  the 
nursery  his  university.  Froebel  sat  down  at  the 
mother's  feet  and  tried  to  write  the  alphabet  of 
educational  science.  Let  woman  trust  her  intui- 
tions as  Froebel  trusted  them,  and  work  in  the 
glory  of  her  instinctive  functions,  to  surround  man 
from  the  cradle  to  the  grave  with  the  harmony, 
the  purity,  the  sweetness,  and  the  grace  which 
nature  made  so  much  more  accessible  to  her  than 
to  man,  and  she  will  fill  her  place  as  an  educator. 
Let  her  never  forget  that  her  work  means  sound- 
ness and  completeness,  not  disproportion  and  one- 
sidedness.  She  may  instruct  in  a  department  of  sci- 
ence, and  do  it  well,  but  more  largely  by  virtue  of 
her  sex  is  she  to  develop  the  whole  being  of  her 
pupils  harmoniously,  to  nurture  both  mind  and 
soul,  and  though  it  may  be  unconsciously,  yet  if  she 
be  a  true  woman  it  is  inevitably  ;  this  is  what  God 
is  doing  through  her,  even  while  she  in  her  own 
proper  self  attempts  mere  teaching.  Character, 
taste,  thought,  feeling,  all  these  are  being  wrought 
out  by  her  intrinsic  personality  through  any  rela- 
tion which  her  specific  connections  establish  for 
her;  that  these  may  be  wrought  out  purely  to  a 
noble  pattern,  she  must  have  built  up  in  herself 
that  noble  pattern ;  the  structural  propensity  of  her 


WOMAN'S   WORK  IN  EDUCATION  159 

i 

nature  must  furnish  in  herself  the  source  of  that 
wonder-working  atmosphere,  that  ethereal  and  mag- 
netic influence  which  transmutes  all  it  touches. 
This  penetrating  influence  will  reach  to  the  inward 
life  of  every  subject  of  its  educative  activity ;  it 
feels  its  way  into  homes,  into  hearts,  into  springs 
of  life,  to  be  redistributed.  It  is  the  harmonizing 
power  in  the  development  of  the  race  ;  it  works 
unobservedly,  and,  all  of  a  sudden,  the  wide  earth  is 
conscious  of  its  great  results. 

The  soul  of  woman  is  conditioned  by  sexto  finer 
methods  of  conduct,  to  more  responsive  sympa- 
thies, both  human  and  divine,  than  is  man's  soul. 
What  a  force  this  gives  her  as  an  educator ! 
Nothing  crude  or  mechanical  is  worthy  of  woman 
as  means  or  methods  of  education.  Woman's 
work  in  education  is  so  fine,  so  high,  so  loving,  as 
to  redeem  each  generation  if  it  were  accepted  and 
occupied  by  woman.  Woman  may  be  profession- 
ally a  teacher  of  sewing,  of  music,  of  history,  or  of 
mathematics  ;  but  essentially  she  is  a  teacher  of 
all  that  she  is  or  can  communicate  through  this 
unconscious  miracle  of  influence,  of  nurture,  —  intel- 
lectual and  moral.  If  she  should  assume  this,  her 
natural  function  as  an  educator,  and  address  herself 
to  the  highest  and  most  harmonious  development 
of  human  nature,  how  far-reaching  and  free  would 
be  her  power ! 

Woman  must  take  herself,  her  whole  consecrated 


l6o     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

self,  into  her  work  of  teaching,  more  largely  and 
distinctively  of  nurturing  the  growing  generation, 
through  the  influence  of  her  personal  culture,  and 
the  magnetic  forces  of  her  intellectual  and  spirit- 
ual intuition,  conserved  as  nature  designed,  not 
spent  in  exhaustive  competition  with  man  for  pur- 
poses of  selfish  ambition.  Something  larger  and 
finer  than  deeds,  more  penetrating  and  compelling 
than  tangible  acts,  —  the  ever-expanding  and  all- 
pervading  aroma  of  life  and  soul  will  beautify  her 
educative  effort  and  glorify  mankind.  As  Goethe 
says :  — 

"  The  unspeakable  will  be  accomplished. 
The  eternal  womanly  leading  man  ever  onward  and  upward." 


THE   UTILITY   OF  THE   IDEAL   IN 
EDUCATION 


ADDRESS  BEFORE    THE  WOMAN'S  EDUCATIONAL 
AND  INDUSTRIAL    UNION 


THIS  is  a  practical  age.  One  of  the  first  ques- 
tions we  ask  in  regard  to  any  proposed  scheme  of 
action  or  thought  is,  Of  what  use  is  it  ?  We  have 
come  to  regard  utility  as  the  only  excuse  for  being ; 
and  not  utility  in  a  very  high,  or  broad,  or  far-see- 
ing sense,  but  in  rather  an  external,  transient, 
and  materialistic  sense,  —  the  immediate  and  me- 
chanical view  of  things  as  useful  or  nor  use- 
ful. Does  this  course  furnish  bread  and  butter  ? 
Does  it  mean  money  ?  Will  it  diffuse  the  neces- 
saries of  physical  sustenance  ?  These  are  very 
important  aspects  of  utility,  and  concern  us  to  a 
very  wide  extent  as  we  meet  the  problem  of  life 
face  to  face.  Especially  in  a  work  of  beneficence 
for  the  mass  of  humanity,  we  are  compelled  to 
emphasize  this  phase  of  utility,  at  least,  before  we 
attempt  a  larger  interpretation.  The  exigencies 

161 


1 62     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

of  the  destitute  and  the  ignorant  seem  to  lie  in 
that  plane  :  we  must  help  them  to  the  means  of 
obtaining  food,  clothing,  shelter,  and  warmth. 
But  even  for  this  class  the  idea  of  utility  has  a 
much  deeper  and  fuller  significance.  Is  not  the 
life  more  than  meat  and  the  body  than  raiment  ? 
Life  is  by  the  poorest  felt  to  include  feeling, 
knowledge,  and  progress  in  the  scale  of  being. 

We  find  ourselves  in  the  midst  of  an  era  of 
material  and  physical  development,  and  we  are  led 
to  form  the  notion  of  physical  and  material  supply 
as  the  snmmum  bonnm  for  all  mankind.  To  train 
the  muscles  to  perfect  manipulation,  to  lay  the 
foundation  of  industries,  to  prepare  the  child  for 
successful  trade,  and  to  occupy  him  physically,  is 
the  educational  ultimatum  of  to-day.  Let  him 
learn  so  much  of  reading  and  writing  and  arith- 
metic as  will  enable  him  to  elbow  his  way  through 
the  world  ;  let  him  study  so  as  to  provide  himself 
with  what  he  needs  for  a  livelihood ;  let  him 
understand  that  honesty  is  the  best  policy,  and,  if 
he  may  be  made  so  fashionable  as  to  catch  such 
unworthy  notions  of  morality,  that  the  virtues  are 
on  the  whole  worth  acquiring  as  a  safe  and  useful 
accomplishment,  —  and  he  has  started  on  the 
course  which  will  give  him  at  least  a  chance  in  the 
"survival  of  the  fittest,"  so  far  as  this  world  is 
concerned. 

Now,  have  we  done  the  best  we  can  for  the  race 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL  IN  EDUCATION     163 

when  wj  have  thus  blotted  out  the  ideals  of  life, 
and  have  reduced  all  activities  to  one  mechanical 
level  ?  We  have  taken  out  of  our  educational 
philosophy  all  that  is  inspirational  ;  we  are  reduced 
to  the  plain  facts,  to  the  practically  useful  in  every 
branch  of  study.  We  study  arithmetic  only  with  j 
an  eye  to  successful  trading,  to  accurate  counting. 
We  take  up  geography  only  to  memorize  its  statis- 
tics, to  have  the  facts  of  political  boundaries  clear, 
the  census  correct,  the  groundwork  of  commercial 
geography  ready  on  which  to  build  our  future 
wealth  in  safety.  It  is  the  "  Gradgrind  "  system  to 
which  we  gravitate,  and  it  leads  us  into  a  barren 
and  arid  country  where  all  that  is  best  and  most 
human  starves  and  dies. 

Now,  in  every  study  and  work  there  is  material 
for  finer  issues.  To  go  beneath  the  surface,  to 
see  the  causes  and  relations  of  things,  to  see  the 
design  and  harmony  of  nature,  to  follow  the  thread 
of  structure  and  development,  to  feel  back  and 
think  back  from  the  surface-fact,  and  forward  from 
the  mysterious  spring  of  power  and  creative  thought, 
into  all  its  manifestations  of  nature  and  of  human 
life  and  art,  —  this  vivifies  the  whole  realm  of  study, 
and  we  are  born  again  into  the  world  of  the  ideal ; 
we  breathe  a  freer  air  and  gain  a  broader  outlook ; 
all  our  faculties  awaken  to  an  ever-evolving  oppor- 
tunity and  growth  of  activity.  The  imagination 
is  ennobled  by  the  preservation  of  the  ideal,  and 


164     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

enters  into  every  mental  effort.  The  student, 
trained  to  search  out  the  meaning  and  the  plan,  to 
discover  the  purpose  and  method  of  every  class  of 
facts  presented  to  his  comprehension,  will  add 
something  to  the  worth  of  those  facts,  will  enlarge 
and  exalt  the  boundaries  of  what  he  deals  with, 
and  build  up  the  science  in  which  his  thought  has 
found  stimulus  and  satisfaction,  as  well  as  the  art 
where  his  inquiry  for  the  ideal  has  preserved  and 
strengthened  his  originative  power.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  acquisition  of  the  bare,  isolated,  and 
external  fact,  the  mechanical  aggregation  of  dead 
material,  will  block  the  way  of  the  scholar  ;  will 
stultify  and  degrade  the  mental  powers,  and  impov- 
erish all  the  essential  realities  for  him  forever  ; 
because  it  is  the  opposite  of  education  or  leading 
out,  it  shuts  in,  narrows,  and  hardens  the  powers 
and  processes  of  the  mind ;  it  makes  a  parrot  or  a 
machine  of  the  child  born  to  seek,  to  know,  and 
to  originate.  One  of  the  most  difficult  of  educa- 
tional propositions  is  that  which  undertakes  to  con- 
vince men  of  the  supreme  reality  of  what  is  not 
apparent  to  the  senses  ;  to  show  them  that  the 
unseen  is  more  real  and  essential  than  the  seen  ; 
that  the  things  perceived  by  the  outward  eye  and 
ear  are  merely  transient  and  external,  and  that 
they  are  useful  only  as  they  build  up  and  sustain 
the  unseen  and  lead  to  eternal  verities.  One  of 
the  most  difficult  of  undertakings  is  to  convince 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL  IN  EDUCATION     165 

people  that  what  they  see  and  handle  is  not  so  real 
as  what  is  not  perceived  by  the  senses.  We  see 
experiments  in  physics,  and  the  subject  seems  to 
us  exhausted  ;  gravitation  and  vibration  seem  to 
have  no  meaning  beyond  weight  and  momentum  ; 
but  do  not  be  content  with  this  meagre  and 
superficial  idea  of  those  forces ;  the  presentation 
is  only  the  hint  of  the  active  power,  a  symbol, 
a  suggestion,  of  the  great  reality.  In  fact,  those 
forces  are  behind  and  within  all  the  universe  ; 
no  eye  can  see  them,  —  if  we  reach  to  heaven 
we  do  not  compass  them :  the  things  they  control, 
the  medium  through  which  they  express  them- 
selves, will  perish,  become  changed  and  disinte- 
grated ;  but  the  forces  themselves  —  how  inde- 
structible and  unvarying  !  It  is  our  great  privilege 
as  human  beings  that  we  can  discern  their  imma- 
nence and  their  permanence. 

We  feel  a  new  reverence  for  the  powers  God 
has  given  to  man  as  we  see  human  thought  run 
forward  to  meet  the  divine  thought.  Kepler,  fol- 
lowing out  his  mathematical  logic,  discovered  the 
laws  of  motion  for  the  planets  before  astronomical 
science  was  able  to  demonstrate  them,  until  his 
third  law  was  at  last  established  by  observation. 
Darwin  felt  his  way  along  an  untrodden  path  to  meet 
the  footsteps  of  the  Creator,  and  was  able  to  point 
out  the  progressive  development  of  organic  life  and 
reveal  a  new  truth  to  humanity.  He  who  cannot 


1 66     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

trust  his  intellectual  strength  so  far  as  to  think 
the  thoughts  of  God  clearly,  can  yet  become  so 
quick  to  respond  to  a  spiritual  union  with  the  Crea- 
tive Spirit  as  to  feel  his  presence  in  the  beauty  of 
earth,  sea,  and  sky,  or  in  the  laws  which  are 
already  revealed  ;  and  this  spiritual  recognition  is  a 
boundless  inspiration.  Everything  we  have  to 
study  in  such  a  sympathy  we  shall  approach  with 
ardor ;  we  touch  the  inside,  not  the  outside  of 
nature,  while  we  are  conscious  of  its  indwelling 
spirit.  If  we  go  through  the  days  and  years  of 
life  without  looking  or  feeling  below  its  material, 
its  round  of  pleasure  or  of  work,  we  are  meeting 
it  as  a  mere  animal.  Are  we  busy  ?  so  is  the  bee  ; 
are  we  industrious  and  patient  ?  so  is  the  ant,  and 
both  perhaps  to  a  greater  degree  than  ourselves ; 
do  we  investigate  the  outward  material  of  things  ? 
so  does  the  beast ;  he  uses  his  senses  and  physical 
means  of  knowledge  as  well  as,  perhaps  better  than, 
we.  If  we  would  be  more  than  the  brute,  we  must 
see  something  more  than  the  external  form  :  we 
must  see  that  of  which  the  material  is  only  the 
medium  of  expression  to  man ;  that  which  arouses 
in  the  mind,  thought,  in  the  heart,  sympathy,  in 
the  soul,  aspiration.  The  inward  eye  must  be 
open  to  discern  the  reality  and  strive  for  it  more 
and  more. 

And  in  all  this  striving  which  follows  the  clear 
perception  of  the  truth,  the  process  of  develop- 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL   IN  EDUCATION     167 

ment  proceeds  ;  human  growth  is  a  succession  of 
conquests  in  the  struggle  toward  the  ideal.  There 
is  no  advance  for  him  who  rests  in  the  outward 
and  does  not  look  beyond  the  immediate  and  tan- 
gible. He  is  imprisoned  hopelessly  in  the  cell 
of  physical  life  who  does  not  look  out  with  a  yearn- 
ing for  freedom  and  longing  to  escape,  which  grows 
into  a  determination  and  effort  to  burst  the  prison 
bars  ;  so  from  desire  are  born  struggle  and  hope  ;  so 
out  of  suffering,  achievement  and  the  enfranchise- 
ment of  power ;  so  the  waves  and  billows  are  sur- 
mounted and  the  shore  is  won  ;  so  the  whole  earth 
groaning  and  travailing,  ushers  forth  the  soul  of 
man  on  its  sublime  pilgrimage.  Evolution  is  the 
constant  method,  not  a  painless,  not  a  stolid  change 
from  low  to  high,  from  small  to  great,  but  a  burst- 
ing of  the  fetters,  a  pressing  against  our  environ- 
ment, a  stretching  of  our  inborn  capacities,  a 
strong  reaching  forward,  breaking  down  every 
stronghold,  throwing  open  door  after  door  which 
shuts  in  the  growing,  longing,  and  conquering 
spirit,  till  with  throe  after  throe  we  are  brought  for- 
ward into  larger  places,  onto  higher  standpoints 
and  into  nobler  spheres  of  life  and  activity. 

The  brown  beetle  scrambles  about  the  muddy 
floor  of  the  stagnant  pool ;  and  not  until  he  strug- 
gles upward,  as  if  to  reach  some  fair  image  of 
what  he  might  be,  does  he  become  a  winged  crea- 
ture formed  to  dart  through  the  summer  air. 


1 68     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

The  chrysalid  with  rapture  stirs  ; 
The  water  beetle  feels  more  nigh 
His  glory  of  the  dragon-fly. 

The  whole  creation  is  lifting  up  its  myriad  hands  for 
something  of  which  it  dreams,  and  which  through 
struggle  it  may  reach  at  last.  We  can  imagine, 
even,  that  some  spirit  moves  in  the  solid  rock  to 
crystallize  and  idealize  it :  the  ruby  and  the  diamond 
attest  the  glorifying  power  of  an  ideal.  So  a  noble 
ideal  acts  upon  the  most  heavy  and  inelastic  tem- 
perament and  transforms  it  at  last.  Education 
must  start  with  ideals  ;  into  every  external  and  out- 
ward form  it  must  breathe  an  inward  significance 
which  alone  gives  value  to  that  outward  form. 

It  is  high  time  that  educators  should  recognize, 
in  every  direction  and  detail  of  their  work,  that  all 
that  is  worth  reaching  is  the  outcome  of  what  is 
immaterial,  the  expression  of  the  hidden,  a  growth 
from  within  outwards,  and  not  an  arbitrary  form 
to  be  adopted  by  conventional  methods,  the  fossil 
of  some  dead  thought,  the  mere  rubbish  of  the 
schools,  the  technicalities  of  the  schoolmaster. 

Bring  back  the  brave  ideals  of  truth,  purity, 
beauty,  and  love.  Let  them  enter  into  the  earliest 
development  of  the  little  child.  Build  up  in  his 
soul-perceptions  a  personality  which  represents  his 
intuitions  of  goodness,  love,  and  power,  and  which 
embodies  his  ideals.  Let  the  idea  and  the  appre- 
hension of  God  be  the  beginning  of  his  knowledge 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL   IN  EDUCATION     169 

and  wisdom.  With  what  a  progressive  ideality 
have  you  thus  endowed  him  as  he  stands  at  the 
threshold  of  his  immortal  career  of  knowledge, 
growing  from  more  to  more,  "  till  mind  and  soul 
according  well  shall  make  one  music!"  Indeed, 
everything  we  know  must  have  its  image  in  our 
minds.  We  see  what  corresponds  to  the  image  we 
have  formed  in  the  brain.  Even  when  we  are 
simply  looking  we  see  what  we  expect  to  see,  or 
what  we  hope  to  see.  If  we  go  out  into  the  woods 
for  anemones  we  see  anemones,  the  egg-hunter 
sees  birds'  nests  ;  the  fisherman  observes  when  the 
day  is  good  for  fishing,  the  housewife  when  it  is 
good  for  drying  clothes.  Walking  with  a  group 
of  children  one  soon  finds  what  their  several  tastes 
and  enjoyments,  their  studies  (if  you  please),  are, 
by  what  they  see  and  hear  and  find.  The  obser- 
vation which  responds  to  some  wish  of  the  heart, 
some  image  of  the  thought,  is  the  real  study,  the  , 
only  study  that  ever  informs  the  world,  the  only 
kind  of  study  worth  having.  Let  a  man,  then,  go 
out  into  the  fields  and  woods  or  among  people,  to 
his  work  or  study  or  recreation,  with  the  right 
image  in  his  mind. 

The  ideal  is  the  all-important  thing  to  start  upon  : 
the  image  in  the  mind,  the  wish  in  the  heart,  the 
love  and  hope  we  carry  in  the  soul,  is  what  will 
shape  the  life;  it  selects  everything  for  us  and 
feeds  us  with  its  own  nourishment ;  we  grow  more 


I  JO     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

and  more  into  a  pattern  of  this  image  from  day  to 
day.  All  knowledge  will  fall  into  the  magnetic 
lines  of  that  ideal.  Do  we  think  of  nature's  beauty, 
of  her  variety  of  form,  of  her  secrets,  and  of  her 
mysteries  ?  They  will  all  unlock  themselves  to  us 
and  let  us  in.  The  naturalist,  the  scientist,  is 
studying  his  subject,  not  from  books  and  teachers 
only,  and  at  given  times,  but  constantly  from  every 
source  of  illumination.  His  ideal  secretes  from  all 
phenomena  that  surround  it  and  are  brought  into 
connection  with  it,  material  for  building  itself 
strongly  into  a  foundation  for  other  ideals  ;  just,  as 
the  coral  polyp  secreting  its  rocky  elements  from 
the  sea  establishes  a  footing  and  a  basis  on  which 
others  may  also  build  many  a  glorious  structure 
undreamed  of  by  the  coral.  Such  an  ideal  in- 
cludes a  grand  ambition  too.  Agassiz  wrote  to 
his  mother  when  he  was  ten  years  old,  "  I  mean  to 
become  the  first  naturalist  of  my  age  ;"  and  he  was. 
Great  ideals  cherished  in  the  heart  grow  into  a 
hope  and  a  controlling  determination  to  achieve 
them.  The  facts  we  learn,  the  rules  we  try  to 
follow,  the  processes  we  go  through,  are  all  outside 
matters  ;  but  the  inspiration  is  a  spring  at  the 
,  root  of  all  activities,  and  builds  up  within  us  intel- 
lectual power  for  every  effort,  love  for  all  learning, 
and  the  character  and  individuality  which  is  our- 
selves eternally.  Whatever  our  ideals,  they  will 
make  us  grow  into  their  image  sooner  or  later. 


UTILITY  OF   THE  IDEAL   IN  EDUCATION     I/I 

The  day  will  come  when  we  might  as  well  have 
them  all  printed  on  our  foreheads,  they  will  be  so 
plain  there.  The  ideal  is  the  pattern  we  are  being 
formed  by  and  fitted  to,  just  as  if  it  were  laid  upon 
our  lives,  and  Fate  with  her  shears  stood  by  trim- 
ming and  paring  the  beautiful  fabric  of  being  to  fit 
it  more  and  more  exactly  and  unalterably  to  that 
pattern,  be  it  good  or  bad,  noble  or  base,  generous 
or  mean,  earthly  or  heavenly.  So,  in  a  smaller 
way,  do  we  stand  beside  our  work,  be  it  ever  so 
small,  with  the  pattern  in  mind  by  which  that 
work  must  be  shaped,  if  it  is  to  be  Worth  anything. 
Even  a  good  game  needs  a  plan  or  pattern  well 
adjusted,  well  regulated.  One  cannot  do  anything 
well  without  a  clear  notion  to  start  with  of  what 
he  is  to  do,  and  how  and  why  he  is  to  do  it.  Hel- 
ter-skelter methods  accomplish  nothing :  we  must 
get  a  very  complete  and  vivid  ideal  to  begin  with. 
This  grows  in  the  mind  by  keeping  it  there,  just  as 
a  seed  grows  and  swells  by  being  in  the  damp 
earth  ;  it  gains  in  clearness  and  distinctness  of 
outline  ;  it  brightens  and  looms  up  in  glowing  pro- 
portions, until  we  can  use  it  for  a  pattern  in  all 
the  detail  of  work.  Man  can  do  things  he  never 
would  have  dreamed  possible  without  it.  There  it 
stands,  all  illuminated  with  the  fervor  of  interest 
and  expectation,  as  if  it  had  a  compelling  radiance 
within  itself,  and  shone  with  an  almost  creative 
light :  he  must  obey  its  unceasing  suggestions  ;  and 


1/2     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

every  blossoming  power  of  life  will  open  only  to 
adorn  it.  What  is  every  form  of  being,  every  type 
of  life,  every  structure  and  organism,  but  an  ex- 
pression, a  way,  a  medium,  through  which  we 
strive  to  reach  the  great  Ideal  of  eternal  thought 
and  love,  of  power  and  beauty,  and  through  which 
it  ever  strives  to  reach  us  ? 

The  poet,  the  seer,  and  the  little  child  can  see 
and  hear  and  feel  the  divine  in  every  clod  and  in 
every  flower,  in  every  form  of  nature,  and  in  every 
sentiment  and  relationship  of  the  soul.  How 
beautiful  and  illuminating  is  the  fact  that  the  child 
is  a  natural  poet  or  seer,  and  takes  by  instinct  what 
otherwise  it  could  never  grasp  in  childhood! 
"  Heaven  lies  about  us  in  our  infancy,  and  trailing 
clouds  of  glory  "  come  the  generations  of  childhood 
into  our  reverent  hands.  Yes,  the  child,  like  the 
poet,  sees  God  in  all,  the  spiritual  within  the  natu- 
ral :  out  of  this  insight  alone  comes  the  full  con> 
prehension  of  outward  forms,  presented  one  after 
another  to  our  attention  and  investigation,  to  our 
experiment  and  discovery ;  then  will  proceed  in 
right  order  knowledge  and  use,  first  that  which  is 
natural,  and  afterwards  that  which  is  spiritual,  — 
the  essential  involved  in  and  informing  the  super, 
ficial,  and  the  superficial  will  prove  as  nothing 
without  such  indwelling.  Out  of  this  insight  and 
sympathy  with  nature  grow  certain  knowledge, 
living  interest,  love  of  learning.  Not  the  shadow, 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL  IN  EDUCATION      173 

but  the  substance,  of  knowledge  is  thus  at  work  on 
the  imagination  of  the  child,  to  give  him  ideals 
which  rest  in  the  mind  as  fertile  germs ;  ever 
growing,  ever  expanding  into  more  inclusive  types, 
ever  ready  for  application  to  more  and  more  varied 
forms,  ever  ready  for  expression  in  more  and  more 
varied  material.  How  belittling  is  the  system  of 
thrusting  form  before  essence,  of  teaching  empty 
words,  of  cultivating  physical  aptness  in  handling 
and  moulding  material,  while  neglecting  the  build- 
ing up  of  those  ideals  for  whose  expression  all  this 
mechanical  facility  is  alone  worth  anything.  "  Let' 
us  do  everything,"  says  Bacon,  "  by  inward  neces- 
sity." An  ape  can  busy  himself  with  the  outside 
or  the  inside  of  a  material  object  :  he  can  see,  hear, 
smell,  taste,  or  feel  it,  as  well  as  the  man,  but  his 
want  of  ideality  is  his  brutish  limitation.  If  utili- 
tarian effort  aims  at  nothing  higher  than  this  out- 
ward impression  and  outward  use,  as  if  man  were 
but  a  brute,  to  be  trained  to  complete  command  of 
the  senses  for  the  objects  of  brute  life  simply,  only 
to  protect  and  perpetuate  the  physical  life  of  him- 
self and  his  offspring,  is  it  not  depraving  and  degen- 
erating in  its  ends  ? 

Ah  !  stop  indeed  to  discriminate  at  this  point  in 
our  schemes  of  industrial  education.  We  are  deal- 
ing not  with  brutish  beasts,  but  with  the  human 
intelligence,  for  which  the  ideal  element  is  insepa- 
rable from  material  facts.  An  immortal  being  must 


1/4     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

be  fed  with  spiritual  nourishment  if  he  would  grow  ; 
that  alone  builds  the  man,  —  the  occupation  of  his 
soul  as  well  as  his  body  ;  the  activity  of  the  soul 
must  inhere  in  all  his  physical  activities  and  inspire 
them  ;  let  every  work  of  his  hands  be  instinct  with 
spirit  and  love.  "There  is  everywhere  in  nature 
and  science  a  voice  audible  to  human  ears,  and  a 
speech  intelligible  to  human  understanding,"even  to 
the  child,  —  nay,  to  him  more  than  others,  —  which 
is  not  possible  of  apprehension  to  the  brute  :  it  is  the 
truth,  the  beauty,  the  logic,  the  faith,  which  under- 
lies all  material  phenomena,  — the  perception  of  the 
immaterial.  The  possibility  of  conceiving  ideals 
vibrates  in  every  human  soul,  even  the  emptiest 
and  the  dullest :  it  is  the  response  God  has  placed 
there  to  his  infinite  beauty,  to  his  eternal  truth, 
to  his  divine  love ;  and  it  always  stimulates  and 
represents  the  effort  after  His  inexhaustible 
knowledge. 

Here  let  us  start  as  with  an  axiom  :  the  child  is 
not  to  be  trained  as  the  brute  is  trained,  neither 

by  the  same  methods  nor  to  the  same  ends.     The 

j  • 

divine  image  —  that  point  of  differentiation  be- 
tween man  and  brute  —  is  photographed  upon  the 
soul  of  every  child  born  into  the  world,  and  will 
be  naturally  reflected  to  his  mind  from  all  the 
works  of  creation.  Professor  Peirce  says,  "We 
have  reason  to  believe  that  there  is  no  human 
thought  capable  of  physical  manifestation  and 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL  IN  EDUCATION      1/5 

consistent  with  the  stability  of  the  material  world 
which  cannot  be  found  incarnated  in  nature." 
Oh,  sublime  and  inspiring  incentive  to  the  teacher, 
to  hold  close  to  the  child  in  his  advancing  path 
that  cloud  of  glory  with  which  he  comes  to  meet 
the  glory  of  the  Lord  in  created  things !  As  when 
the  mother  watches  the  face  of  her  child  as  he 
begins  to  recognize  his  own  ideals  in  the  new 
forms  presented  to  his  advancing  knowledge,  she 
throws  away  her  hoard  of  maxims  and  asks  only 
not  to  hinder  or  cloud  his  way,  not  to  efface  one 
impulse  of  childish  trust  in  unseen  realities,  but 
only  to  go  on  with  him  to  claim  his  own,  —  so 
should  the  teacher  strive  chiefly  to  keep  the  doors 
of  nature  open,  to  lead  the  prince  to  his  kingdom, 
the  king  to  his  crown,  and  with  a  joy  akin  to  the 
child's,  meet  type  after  type,  material  after  mate- 
rial, only  to  inform  it  with  growing  ideals  ;  to  con- 
quer, transfigure,  and  assimilate  it  that  it  may 
express  God's  beauty  and  truth  more  clearly  and 
more  truly.  This  is  to  seek  first  the  kingdom  of 
God  for  the  child  ;  and  when  this  is  done,  all  these 
things — the  material  uses,  the  material  skill  and 
power,  the  material  advance  of  the  world,  and  all 
the  lesser  objects  of  industry  which  even  the  brute 
might  grasp  —  shall  be  added  unto  his  inheritance. 
For  what  is  so  generative  as  an  inspiration  ?  what 
so  productive  as  an  ideal  ?  If  such  forces  could 
be  measured  and  the  result  set  against  that  of 


THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

mere  industrial  forces,  how  instructive  would  be 
the  comparison !  the  statue  and  the  song,  the 
music  and  the  eloquence  of  man,  —  as  against  his 
grinding  toil  and  the  hum  of  his  factories  ;  the 
school  of  the  future  as  against  the  school  of  the 
past.  For  the  things  which  the  child  sees  should 
be  made  symbols  to  him,  —  the  outward  and  visi- 
ble expression  of  an  inward  and  spiritual  truth. 
"The  invisible  things"  should  be  "clearly  seen, 
being  understood  by  the  things  which  are  made." 

The  development  of  the  human  soul  proceeds 
by  the  same  law  as  the  development  of  the  or- 
1  ganisms  of  nature ;  therefore  they  correspond  to 
each  other ;  therefore  the  ideal  waits  for  its  com- 
pletion in  the  material.     The  physical  phenomena 
about  us  incorporate  thought,  and  in  return  minis- 
;  ter  to  the  soul,  and  are  the  signs  and  pledges  to  us 
|  of  spiritual  truths ;  the  laws  of  the  natural  world 
mirror  and  present  the  laws  of  the  spiritual  world. 
The  continuity  of  law  makes  that  unity  clear  to 
the  mind  as  light  to  the  eye,  as  sound  to  the  ear. 
Never  deal  with  material  forms,  forgetful  of  this 
great  principle.     Let  the  growth  of   the  child's 
soul  correspond  to  and  advance  with  the  growth 
of  his  mind  and  body  ;  do  not  starve  it  by  mere 
material    investigation    and    purposeless    physical 
j  training.     Without  the  ideal  what  is    called   the 
|  real  is  but  a  chaos.     The  ideal,  like  the  spirit  of 
\  God,  moves  upon  the  material,  and  life  results,  - 


UTILITY  OF   THE  IDEAL  IN  EDUCATION      177 

organic  and  orderly  life,  progressing  toward  more 
complete  and  adequate  symbolism.  The  law  of 
continuity  unites  mind  with  matter.  God's  dwell- 
ing-place is  in  the  secret  of  this  law,  and  we  can 
teach  the  real  lesson  of  the  material  universe,  and 
train  the  physical  power  of  man  over  it,  only  as 
we  apprehend  it  in  the  light  of  ideality. 

What  stirring  power  an  heroic  ideal  carries  to 
our  hearts  !  Our  nerves  and  muscles  grow  tense  as 
body  responds  to  spirit.  Read  to  your  dull  class  a 
poem  like  Browning's  "Pheidippides  ;"  tell  to  your 
careless  pupils  the  story  of  Stradivarius,  as  George 
Eliot  sings  it ;  arouse  your  indifferent  class,  not  by 
rebuke  or  the  prick  of  the  goad,  but  by  the  mag- 
netism of  your  own  living  earnestness,  which  shall 
quicken  their  heart-beats  in  response  to  your  own, 
and  beget  in  them  the  strenuous  endeavor  which 
fires  your  own  pulses  ;  kindle  with  love  of  your 
theme,  and  all  their  eyes  shall  sparkle  back  the 
flame, "so  through  all  labor  like  a  thread  of  gold  is 
woven"  a  divine  enthusiasm.  They  will  see  run- 
ning through  your  fingers  those  beautiful  patterns 
which  make  them  eager  to  imitate,  to  emulate,  and 
to  originate,  until  by  and  by  will  come  into  their 
lives  as  an  undying  illumination,  that 

"  Ray  of  heavenly  light  gilding  all  forms, 
The  unambiguous  footsteps  of  the  God 
Who  gives  its  lustre  to  an  insect's  wing, 
And  wheels  His  throne  upon  the  rolling  worlds." 


1 78     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

What  an  uplift  is  this  kind  of  education  from 
the  low  and  commonplace  notions  of  a  merely 
useful  education  !  The  Promethean  fire  of  ideality 
stirs  the  lofty  soul  and  makes  every  task  divine ; 
the  worker  is  not  tied  to  earth,  though  he  works 
with  the  clod,  but  he  holds  both  earth  and  heaven 
within  his  horizon. 

"  See  how  he  scorneth  human  arguments, 
So  that  nor  oar  he  needs  nor  other  sail 
Than  his  own  wings  between  so  distant  shores." 

When  we  look  with  weary  eyes  on  the  mechan- 
ical drudgery,  the  dead  routine,  and  earth-bound 
prospect  which  some  of  our  modern  schemes  of 
education  and  the  reforms  of  the  day  hold  out,  we 
call  to  mind  once  more  the  words  of  Dante  :  — 

"  What  is  this,  ye  laggard  spirits? 
What  negligence,  what  standing  still  is  this? 
Run  to  the  mountain  to  strip  off  the  slough 
That  lets  not  God  be  manifest  to  you." 

Let  education  take  her  winged  way  above  the 
animal  senses,  above  the  inorganic  material,  while 
using  and  training  both,  and  seize  the  image  which 
makes  dead  matter  into  living  symbols,  drawing 
from  every  real  thing  its  creative  ideal.  Carlyle 
says,  "  Nature  is  the  time-vesture  of  God." 
Browning  sings  of:  — 

"God  in  the  broken  gleams,  in  the  stifled  splendor  and  gloom ; 
Speak  to  Him  for  He  hears,  and  spirit  with  spirit  can  meet. 
Closer  is  He  than  breathing,  and  nearer  than  hands  and  feet." 


UTILITY  OF   THE   IDEAL    IN  EDUCATION     179 

How  grandly  sound  the  voices  of  the  astrono- 
mer and  the  student  of  nature  as  they  proclaim 
from  starry  skies  and  ciphered  page,  from  the 
way  of  plant  and  animal  life,  the  closeness  of  the 
ideal,  the  consecration  of  the  real !  Says  Agassiz, 
"  I  will  frankly  tell  you  that  my  experience  in 
prolonged  scientific  investigation  has  convinced  me 
that  a  belief  in  God  — a  God  who  is  behind  and 
within  the  vanishing  points  of  human  knowledge 
—  adds  a  wonderful  stimulus  to  the  man  who  at- 
tempts to  penetrate  into  the  region  of  the  unknown. 
Of  myself,  I  may  say  that  I  never  make  prepa- 
ration for  penetrating  into  some  small  province  of 
nature  hitherto  undiscovered,  without  breathing  a 
prayer  to  the  Being  who  hides  His  secrets  from 
me  only  to  allure  me  graciously  on  to  the  unfold- 
ing of  them." 

We  outgrow  what  is  partial ;  we  must  continually 
search  forward  for  the  complete.  The  hand  and  I 
the  tongue  need  all  their  cunning  for  the  produc- 
tion of  the  expressed  ideal ;  and  "  the  ideal  life,  the 
completed  life,  haunts  us  all."  Even  this  corpo- 
real body  has  its  ideal,  which  is  its  essential  part; 
for  it  is  not  the  decaying  particles  which  come 
into  and  pass  out  of  it  from  day  to  day  which  can 
be  called  the  body,  but  rather  that  inevitable  pattern 
according  to  which  all  these  changing  forms  are  or- 
ganized, and  which  is  the  eternal  expression  of  the 
indwelling  spirit.  Mind  is  more  real  than  matter, 


ISO     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

spirit  more  real  than  mind,  and  they  both  work 
through  the  material  of  their  environment,  assimi- 
lating it  to  the  organism  of  the  body,  copying  that 
ideal  which  they  must  express,  and  through  which 
alone  they  can  secure  or  communicate  force  and 
knowledge.  The  ideal  body  is  imperishable :  it 
grows  up  with  the  growing  soul,  and  at  every  stage 
offers  it  a  fit  instrument  for  its  work  and  a  fit  me- 
dium through  which  to  receive  its  education.  So 
it  is,  only  a  degree  removed,  with  all  the  material 
world  without  us,  which  should  be  set  before  us 
and  put  within  our  grasp  as  a  secondary  force  and 
medium  of  expression  of  our  minds  and  souls  : 
it  should  never  be  treated  as  alien  to  the  uses 
of  the  soul,  or  for  any  other  use  than  as  the  pos- 
sible instrument  and  image  of  our  ideals  of  truth, 
love,  and  beauty,  to  be  revealed  by  the  trained 
hand  and  brain.  Every  outward  subject  of  study 
and  experiment  may  be  regarded  as  awaiting  our 
recognition  as  an  expression  of  the  divinity  of 
our  own  nature,  and  of  the  divine  symbolism 
which  responds  to  and  should  awaken  it. 

"  Every  natural  flower  which  grows  on  earth 
Implies  a  flower  on  the  spiritual  side, 
Substantial,  archetypal,  all  aglow 
With  blossoming  causes,  — not  so  far  away 
That  we  whose  spirit  is  somewhat  cleared, 
May  eaten  at  something  of  the  bloom  and  breath 
Too  vaguely  apprehended,  though  indeed 
Still  apprehended." 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL  IN  EDUCATION      l8l 

We  must  from  our  own  soul-activities  thus 
inform  the  material  creation  with  divine  life. 
Nature  has  packed  away  this  glowing  ideality  even 
in  her  iuorganic  material  :  her  coal-beds  are  j 
banked  and  consolidated  sunshine  moulded  into 
patterns  of  what  was  once  growing  and  organic 
beauty ;  her  yellow  sands  are  heaps  of  crystals 
shaped  by  the  mysterious  and  intangible  vibra- 
tions wrought  by  the  ideality  of  light  and  heat. 
How  the  history  of  the  solid  earth  illustrates  the 
ideality  of  the  physical  processes  !  It  is  only  the  , 
ideal  which  has  prepared  the  earth  for  man's  uses. 
Utility  is  a  common  name  for  causes  and  effects 
which  without  ideality  have  no  significance.  In- 
dustry is  a  monotonous  and  unworthy  succession 
of  efforts,  if  not  inspired  by  ideality  of  purpose, 
of  motive,  or  of  imagination ;  and  even  the  crude 
substances  we  train  our  hands  to  work  with  call 
upon  us  to  produce  their  highest  utility  by  bring- 
ing forth  their  imprisoned  ideals. 

The  training  of  the  body  is  for  the  better  and 
fuller  expression  of  the  mind  and  soul  ;  not  to 
overpower  and  dwarf  the  mind,  but  to  give  it 
energy.  The  body  for  the  mind,  and  both  for  the 
soul.  This  is  the  true  doctrine  of  education. 
Give  manual  training,  that  man  may  give  shape 
and  outlook  to  his  ideas ;  give  power  to  his 
muscle,  that  he  may  control  his  material  of  ex- 
pression. Give  physical  development,  that  he  may 


1 82     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

have  vigor  in  every  realm  of  his  activities.  He 
must  carve  out  his  thought  in  whatever  stuff  the 
world  has  to  offer.  "In  man,"  says  Royce,  "the 
ideal  and  the  real  blend  and  take  coloring  from 
one  another."  Education  must  embrace  in  every 
act  the  intellect  and  the  soul  or  it  is  shorn  of  its 
utility.  We  must  throw  the  inspiration  of  our 
highest  activities  into  every  channel  of  work. 
We  may  work  in  any  line  of  either  manual  or  intel- 
lectual development  under  this  inspiration  ;  it  may 
be  of  love  either  for  another  or  for  our  country,  hu- 
manity, or  God,  —  this  is  the  ideality  of  affection.  It 
may  be  with  the  inspiration  of  a  clear  image  which 
fills  the  mind,  and  is  copied  in  material  forms  ;  it  is 
a  mental  pattern  of  beauty,  truth,  or  harmony,  and 
must  be  expressed,  —  this  is  the  ideality  of  art  or 
of  science  ;  or  we  may  work  under  the  inspiration 
of  devotion  to  duty,  to  God,  and  to  eternal  issues, 
and  this  is  the  highest  motive-power,  the  ideality 
of  religion.  Any  or  all  of  these  inspirations  pro- 
duce the  greatest  possible  results  of  human  activ- 
ity. The  old  Greeks  understood  this  in  offering 
their  best  service  in  any  direction  on  the  altar  of 
their  gods,  as  the  highest  consecration  of  even 
their  physical  efforts. 

Let  us  have  no  dead  materialism  or  aimless 
motive  in  our  new  educational  departure,  but  make 
all  industrial  training  glow  with  mental  or  moral 
fervor,  that  the  real  and  ideal  may  unite  in  the 


UTILITY  OF  THE  IDEAL   IN  EDUCATION       183 

most  perfect  utility.  Only  when  the  idea  of  con- 
tinuity and  harmony  shall  be  fully  conceived  shall 
we  be  able  to  secure  eternal  utility.  As  nature 
associates  with  the  physical  training  of  childhood 
all  the  beauty,  mystery,  and  spiritual  meaning  of 
its  outward  forms,  so  must  the  educator  inspire  all 
the  material  of  educative  employment,  all  crude 
opportunities  and  tentative  essays  of  industrial 
work  and  training,  with  their  related  possibilities 
of  spiritual  expression.  Taste  and  feeling  must 
stimulate  industry  if  it  is  to  become  creative. 
Symbols  of  beauty  and  truth  adapted  to  his 
degree  of  advancement  should  be  presented  to 
the  worker ;  if  he  can  do  no  more  than  copy  them 
let  the  moral  idea  of  truth  in  execution  and  faith- 
ful imitation  inspire  the  eye,  the  hand,  and  the 
heart.  Let  some  bright  hope  born  of  love  ani- 
mate the  labor  and  give  it  a  finer  quality  and  more 
complete  finish.  Enrich  the  intellectuality,  refine 
the  purpose,  exalt  the  motive  of  the  worker  if  you 
would  raise  the  tone  of  the  work.  In  all  these 
industrial  occupations  do  not  shut  the  door  on 
that  which  differentiates  human  from  brute  indus- 
try ;  viz.,  the  expression  of  the  mind  and  soul. 
The  child's  share  of  the  divine  thought  must 
blossom  into  form  through  the  skill  of  his  fingers 
if  one  element  of  value  is  to  be  added  to  the 
dead  matter  upon  which  the  child  works.  What 
force  shall  be  mighty  enough  to  transform  indus- 


184     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

try  into  creation  and  thereby  make  it  human  ?  Is 
it  not  the  power  of  thought,  the  energy  of  love, 
the  force  of  the  divine  ideal,  which  springs  from 
man's  spiritual  relationship  ?  The  God  in  man 
reconciling  the  world  unto  Himself? 


THE  GOSPEL  OF  MOTHERHOOD 


AT  THE  GRADUATION'  OF  KINDERGARTEN  NOR- 
MAL CLASS 


I  SPEAK  of  elemental  motherhood, — the  moth- 
erhood of  nature,  of  humanity,  and  of  divinity: 
it  is  the  glad  tidings  of  the  universe ;  it  holds 
the  promise  of  the  future  ;  it  conserves  the  riches 
of  the  past  ;  it  is  the  brooding  joy  of  growing 
life,  —  God's  spirit  moving  upon  the  face  of  the 
deep.  The  motherhood  of  nature  is  its  nourish- 
ing power,  its  close  embrace  of  the  springs  of 
life,  the  fostering  of  that  generative  germ  of  evo- 
lution which  the  Source  of  Life  implanted  in  the 
universe ;  it  is  the  embodiment  of  creative  love, 
and  the  constant  expression  and  endless  communi- 
cation of  that  love.  The  heavens  showed  it  forth 
when  the  earth  was  without  form  and  void  ;  the 
rhythm  of  that  anthem  which  the  stars  sang  to- 
gether was  its  cradle-song,  and  the  nebulous  halo 
of  clustering  systems  was  its  dream  of  birth. 

The  motherhood  of  nature  is  infinite  and  sub- 
185 


1 86     THE   SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

lime ;  it  is  an  ever-present  tenderness,  companion- 
ship, personality,  intimacy,  comfort,  patience,  and 
self-surrender ;  a  great  beating  heart  close  to  our 
heart,  a  conscious  permeating  sympathy  of  being ; 
the  innermost  of  nature.  I  love  to  think  of 
mother-nature  awaiting  the  growth  of  life  within 
her  ample  bosom,  the  gradual  unfolding  of  the 
germ  of  all  created  things.  The  eons  were  not 
too  long  for  her  faith  and  patient  power  ;  the 
heavens  were  not  too  vast,  the  earth  with  its 
infinite  fulness  was  not  too  abundant,  for  her  long- 
suffering  ;  for  she  knew  through  all  her  fibres  the 
present  God  :  from  one  end  to  the  other  of  time 
and  space  the  tender  love  of  God  was  brooding, 
and  every  pulse-beat  of  the  universe  spoke  the 
potential  gratitude  of  eternity. 

Did  this  universal  mother  dream  of  her  myriad 
children?  Did  she  see  in  prophetic  vision  her 
grand  revolving  systems,  her  universes  of  suns, 
her  galaxies  of  stars,  her  firmaments  of  luminous 
centres,  and  her  grand  enginery  of  cosmical  forces  ? 
Did  she  know  of  her  planets  and  her  moons,  of  the 
myriad  development  of  being  in  each,  the  innum- 
erable entities,  her  children  of  life  ?  No  :  the 
mother  only  dreams  and  trusts  and  nurtures.  She 
finds  the  past,  present,  and  future  but  one  eternal 
Now,  and  devotes  all  her  energies  of  spirit,  thought, 
and  physical  life  to  the  results  of  the  moment,  the 
ever-succeeding  moment, — which  is  eternity. 


KINDERGARl^EN  ADDRESSES  187 

Then  the  beautiful  motherhood  of  the  earth  ! 
The  vaporous  gloom  of  upper  and  nether  atmos- 
pheres, the  pulsing  of  spheric  seas,  the  lines  of 
polarization  and  demarcation,  the  slowly  gather- 
ing crust,  like  the  hardening  shell  of  the  growing 
egg,  the  nodules  of  various  life,  the  geologic  peri- 
ods of  different  embryonic  stages,  the  successive 
types  of  form  and  function,  the  consummate  flow- 
er of  plant,  animal,  and  human  life  covering  her 
breast  and -drinking  in  the  generous  current  of 
her  life-blood  ;  how  rich,  how  beneficent,  and  how 
prodigal  a  mother  she  has  been  ! 

We,  her  dearest  children,  revel  in  her  mother- 
hood of  lavish  beauty :  the  brooding  nest,  the 
swelling  bud,  the  self-surrender  of  seasons  and 
tides,  of  each  for  all  and  all  for  each ;  giving,  as  a 
mother  gives,  her  watching,  her  protection,  her 
tender  care  to  every  budding  cell,  to  every  preg- 
nant protoplasm,  to  every  evolving  molecule  and 
organism  ;  waiting  patient  and  believing,  through 
multiplied  disaster,  for  every  crystal  to  fix  its  sym- 
metry, for  every  seed  to  grow,  for  every  creature 
to  fulfil  its  developing  purpose,  and  for  man,  her 
darling,  to  achieve  his  destiny. 

Dear  mother  earth  that  clothes  us  with  our 
mortal  frames,  that  marshals  for  us  our  warders  of 
light,  that  weaves  the  curtains  of  our  repose,  that 
ministers  to  our  strength  and  glory  of  meridian 
life,  and  then  leads  us  gently  down  the  slope  of 


1 88     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

age  and  takes  us  again  to  her  bosom  !  From  her 
dust  we  came,  by  it  we  live  and  flourish,  and  to  it 
we  return.  How  dear  is  the  earth,  our  mother ! 
beautiful  and  wonderful  in  the  sunny  radiance  of 
our  youth,  glorious  in  the  full  tide  of  our  maturity, 
offering  us  gifts  at  every  turn,  revealing  her 
treasures  to  our  opening  eyes,  and  winning  us  with 
endearing  caresses  to  try  our  strength,  to  attain 
by  struggle,  and  to  build  up  an  immortal  inherit- 
ance from  the  contact  and  opportunity  as  well  as 
the  difficulties  she  presents  to  us,  as  kind  in  what 
she  withholds  as  in  what  she  gives  ;  we  lie  upon 
her  verdant  breast  to  dream  of  a  fairer  home,  and 
ungratefully  babble  to  her  of  a  paradise  far  away 
whose  hues  she  alone  has  painted.  How  close  her 
heart  throbs  to  our  own  as  she  leads  us  beside  her 
still  waters  !  How  we  mount  up  on  wings  as  eagles, 
while  she  spreads  her  skies  above  us,  and  with  the 
self-abnegation  of  motherhood  points  us  to  brighter 
worlds !  She  feeds  us  and  heals  us  ;  she  waits 
upon  our  cradle  and  upon  our  altar  ;  she  kisses 
our  lids  together  at  last,  and  leaves  a  smile  upon 
the  marble  lips  as  tenderly  as  if  we  had  spent  our 
lives  to  repay  her.  Motherhood  is  indeed  the 
highest  title  and  office  of  the  earth  we  love. 

In  the  realm  of  plant-life  this  grand  impulse  is 
so  plain  as  to  stand  for  a  symbol  of  life  in  the 
highest  realm  ;  the  history  and  plan  of  every 
vegetable  organism  is  the  provision  for  and  carry- 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  189 

ing  forward  of  this  beautiful  instinct  of  nature  ; 
the  root,  the  stem,  the  bud,  the  leaves,  the  flower, 
speak  forever  of  the  devotion  of  the  plant  to  its 
ideal  of  reproduction  and  nurture.  What  count- 
less devices  for  the  protection  of  each  germ,  each 
organ  !  what  wonderful  contrivance  for  growth 
and  play  of  activities  !  the  soft  wrappings  more 
silky  than  the  textures  of  Samarcand,  the  zephyr- 
ous  winged  envelopes,  the  cunning  traps,  the 
springy  coils,  the  curious  devices,  all  to  assist  this 
delicate  child  in  its  growth  and  safety,  as  if  she 
were  the  sole  nursling  of  the  tender  mother ;  how 
ineffably  loving  and  significant  of  mother-love  is 
the  plant-life  of  the  globe  ! 

But  as  the  ideal  of  motherhood  advances  in  the 
scale  of  being  how  much  clearer  becomes  its  ex- 
pression—  the  mother  with  her  young,  the  insect 
yielding  itself  to  the  martyrdom  of  metamorphosis, 
clothing  itself  with  the  death-shroud  of  the  chrys- 
alis to  give  fuller  and  freer  life  and  development 
to  its  offspring,  the  bird  with  her  callow  brood,  the 
fish  carrying  up  to  the  flooding  streams  the  news 
of  prolific  generation,  the  wild  beast  fondling  her 
helpless  young  within  her  guarded  den,  the  cattle 
upon  a  thousand  hills,  the  beast  of  the  forest,  the 
monster  of  the  seas,  all  give  themselves  to  the 
privilege  of  motherhood  with  a  fidelity  which  has 
no  stint  and  no  count ;  the  days  are  too  short  for 
their  devotion,  the  nights  too  gentle  for  their 


190     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

guardianship.  God  has  charged  them  with  this 
precious  treasure,  and  who  among  them  all  is 
recreant  ?  They  witness  to  us  something  of  God's 
measure  of  motherly  duty,  as  they  minister  to  the 
needs  of  their  generations.  See  the  mother-lamb, 
the  mother-bird ;  her  gentle  sheltering,  her  anxious 
care,  her  courage  of  defence,  her  faithfulness  unto 
death,  and  then  begin  to  understand  what  God 
means  by  motherhood.  Watch  the  dumb  creatures 
enduring  pain  for  their  young  without  a  murmur, 
glorying  in  their  safety,  joy,  and  beauty ;  lapping 
their  glossy  necks,  enticing  them  to  exercise, 
blissful  in  their  companionship,  agonized  at  parting. 
That  motherhood  is  the  crown  of  life  is  attested 
by  these  our  lowly  fellow-beings,  who  thus  do  all 
they  can  to  express  somewhat  of  God's  tender  love 
for  his  creatures. 

But  human  motherhood  reveals  divine  love  more 
fully  than  aught  else  in  the  great  plan.  What  a 
miracle  it  is  as  it  descends  into  the  countless 
homes  on  this  round  planet !  ever  a  fresh,  a  sacred, 
a  wondrous  mystery  !  God  with  us !  All  the  sor- 
rows which  attend  it  are  as  nothing  in  the  light  of 
its  proud  and  awe-touched  joy.  The  keynote  of 
its  anthem  was  uttered  by  Eve,  and  comes  down  to 
us  clear  and  strong  through  the  centuries  in  its 
divine  as  well  as  human  recognition,  "  I  have 
gotten  a  man  from  the  Lord."  Mother-love  paints 
for  us  the  very  color  and  touch  of  God's  love,  —  His 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  191 

tender  love,  His  patient  love,  His  providential  and 
embracing  love,  His  faithful  love,  His  forgiving 
love,  His  self-sacrificing  love,  His  dying  love  :  in 
all  these  phases  and  aspects  of  a  mother's  love 
as  we  have  seen  it,  as  we  have  known  it,  and  as 
we  have  felt  it,  we  see  drawn  the  very  outline  and 
pattern  of  God's  love  for  us  ;  for  what  other  shapes 
and  language  can  syllable  our  ideal  of  God  so  well 
as  those  primal  and  holy  whisperings  at  our  cradle 
and  in  our  mothers'  arms  ?  Who  but  a  mother 
could  show  us  how  loving,  how  patient,  how 
believing,  and  how  forgiving  God  can  be  ? 

The  gospel  of  motherhood  is  a  redeeming  gos- 
pel. If  we  go  to  the  lost  and  degraded,  to  the 
ignorant,  the  suffering,  and  the  tempted,  as  a 
mother  goes  to  her  child,  how  can  we  fail  to  re- 
cover, to  comfort,  and  to  save?  In  the  spirit  of 
this  beautiful  gospel  we  shall  go  with  open  arms, 
with  sympathetic  entreaty,  with  helping  hands, 
and  through  us  God's  love  will  appeal  most  per- 
fectly to  the  souls  we  seek  to  save.  This  is  the 
true  secret  of  woman's  power  over  others  :  let  her 
surrender  herself  to  its  impulse  and  expression  ; 
let  the  teacher  feel  herself  as  a  mother  to  her 
flock ;  in  this  the  kindergarten  shows  us  the 
example  ;  its  very  philosophy  was  learned  from  the 
relation  of  the  mother  to  her  child.  The  soul- 
activities  of  motherhood  are  the  great  privilege  of 
the  teacher  of  little  ones  ;  she  can  take  them  into 


I Q2     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

her  dower  of  womanhood  to  bless  and  illuminate 
all  children,  and  especially  the  homeless  and  worse 
than  motherless.  Are  your  arms  and  hearts  not 
large  enough  and  strong  enough,  dear  teachers,  to 
clasp  them  with  the  full  power  and  love  of  mother- 
hood ?  They  are  all  God's  children,  and  He  calls 
you  to  show  them  what  you  can  of  His  measure 
and  quality  of  loving  ;  so  to  express  your  mother- 
hood. 

The  gospel  of  motherhood  has  done  a  great,  a 
blessed  work  in  the  world.  What  an  influence  in 
Christendom  has  been  even  the  contemplation  of 
its  image  in  art  —  the  Holy  Mother  and  Child! 
Christmas  is  but  a  celebration  of  this  proud  and 
tender  absorption  of  love  in  its  highest  human 
form.  We  gaze  upon  the  beautiful  Madonnas  to 
refresh  our  souls,  to  put  to  rest  our  perplexities 
and  harmonize  our  being  ;  we  breathe  the  pure 
atmosphere  of  motherhood,  we  feel  it  to  be  a 
symbol  of  God's  love,  and  we  grow  calm  and  find 
our  souls  in  poise;  our  faith  is  renewed  for  all 
poor  and  warped  humanity  as  we  see  the  child  in 
his  mother's  arms  and  know  it  to  be  his  God-given 
place.  For  the  divine  love  wears  an  aspect  of 
motherhood  to  the  trusting  soul ;  let  us  try  to 
understand  how  close  and  deep  and  true  it  is  for 
every  child  of  God's.  We  are  not  waifs  in  a 
strange  city,  but  at  home  in  the  arms  of  God  ;  and 
if  human  motherhood  had  been  created  only  as  a 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  193 

demonstration,  an  exposition  of  the  divine  moth- 
erhood in  God,  it  could  not  have  accomplished 
such  a  purpose  more  clearly  than  it  does  as  a  part 
of  human  history  and  experience.  We  learn  from 
our  utmost  tenderness,  our  dearest  embraces,  our 
most  complete  self-abnegation  for  our  children,  the 
beginning  of  God's  tenderness,  the  alphabet  of 
his  yearning  love,  the  first  syllables  of  His  wel- 
come and  forgiveness. 

Take  then,  as  Froebel  had  the  wisdom  and  spir- 
itual discernment  to  do,  the  relation  of  the  mother 
and  child  as  the  pattern  of  your  most  helpful  and 
nurturing  relation  with  the  children,  and  the  meth- 
ods of  the  mother  with  the  child  as  the  model  for 
the  truest  methods  of  education,  and  when  you 
can  say  with  him,  "  The  nursery  was  my  univer- 
sity," you  will  have  received  the  highest  prepara- 
tion and  grace  attainable  for  the  teacher. 


THE   RELATION   OF   THE   KINDERGAR- 
TEN TO  THE  SCHOOL  COURSES 


AN  ADDRESS  TO  KIATDERGARTNERS 


HAVE  you  ever  listened,  dear  Kindergartners,  to 
some  grand  sonata  of  Beethoven  or  Mozart,  to 
some  fugue  of  Bach's,  or  to  one  of  Liszt's  mysteri- 
ous preludes,  and  while  you  drew  in  the  deep  sig- 
nificance of  each  successive  movement,  and  thrilled 
responsive  to  its  various  presentments  of  the 
beauty  and  glory  and  wonderful  unfolding  of  the 
riddle  of  life,  have  you  noted  how  the  great  theme 
which  was  announced  in  its  simplicity  at  first  is 
ever  and  anon  recurring,  ever  shifting  from  key  to 
key,  breaking  through  every  fantasy,  every  varia- 
tion, now  dominating  the  adagio,  now  the  scherzo, 
now  the  andante,  now  the  rondo,  singing  itself 
out  even  in  the  capriccioso ;  ever  the  same  beauti- 
ful theme  of  the  master's  creative  impulse,  the 
tone-sequence  and  proportion  of  Nature,  inter- 
preted by  genius  ? 

So,  have  I  thought,  do  you  give  us  the  true 
194 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  195 

theme  of  our  grand  symphony  of  education  as  you 
lead  your  child  orchestra  at  the  opening  choral  of 
school-life.  You  are  like  the  master-musician 
who  strikes  out  the  great  harmony,  that  many  a 
listening  heart  may  catch  its  inspiration  and 
weave  it  into  utterance,  till  we  hear  its  notes 
from  chime  to  chime,  from  melody  to  melody, 
through  every  phase  and  strophe  of  our  swelling 
anthem  of  child-culture. 

For  the  ancient  mists  and  vapors  which  have 
enveloped  the  idea  of  the  kindergarten  in  its 
earlier  days  among  us,  through  whose  dense  me- 
dium we  saw  Froebel's  consummate  philosophy 
only  as  a  meaningless  amusement  for  childhood,  a 
mere  whiling  away  of  useless  time  till  school  train- 
ing should  begin,  — these  clouds  of  ignorant  uncon- 
cern are  vanishing  before  the  sun  of  educational 
science,  and  we  begin  to  discern  the  clear  outlines 
of  kindergarten  philosophy.  This  is  good  news, 
indeed,  for  you  who  have  felt  the  essential  unsym- 
pathy,  the  deep  want  of  comprehension,  the  al- 
most contempt  with  which  your  work  has  been 
too  often  regarded.  Your  day  of  recognition  and 
appreciation  has  dawned,  and  your  long  and  stead- 
fast patience  and  faith  are  beginning  to  receive 
their  recompense  of  reward.  Your  faces  are  now 
toward  the  sunrise,  the  light  of  rosy  skies  is  upon 
your  seed-scattering  fingers,  the  ground  you  tread 
is  holy,  the  breeze  about  you  whispers  of  heaven, 


196     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

and  the  harvest  for  which  you  are  planting  is 
white  already  for  the  garners  of  the  Lord.  We 
have  heard  the  sweet  notes  of  your  coming,  and 
are  learning  to  sing  them  for  the  full  chorus 
of  our  harvest-home. 

When  we  adopted  the  kindergarten  as  the 
foundation  of  our  school  system,  we  adopted  at 
once  its  spirit,  its  philosophy,  and  its  methods  as 
the  pattern  and  formative  germ  of  all  our  school- 
works.  Perhaps  to  some  of  us  this  breadth  of 
application  was  partly  unconscious  :  we  saw  the 
value  of  it  in  its  place,  but  not  its  reach,  its  scope, 
or  its  essential  power  ;  we  saw  it  as  a  tree  planted 
by  rivers  of  waters,  but  had  not  yet  discovered 
that  it  was  for  the  healing  of  the  nations.  This  is 
the  history  of  every  great  discovery  or  impulse 
for  the  advancement  of  mankind :  it  is  set  in  its 
place  blindly  and  unconsciously,  and  the  world 
learns  its  pregnant  power  only  by  observing  its 
growth  and  adaptability ;  but,  consciously  or  un- 
consciously, we  have  set  up  the  kindergarten  as 
a  standard  of  principles  and  methods,  from  the 
mother's  arms  to  the  alma  mater  of  university 
training.  We  have  sounded  the  theme,  and  it 
must  repeat  itself  in  every  movement  and  render- 
ing of  the  harmony  :  it  is  the  spirit  of  the  kinder- 
garten, as  the  spirit  of  love,  of  faith,  of  mutual 
helpfulness ;  the  philosophy  of  the  kindergarten 
in  its  free  development,  its  obedience  to  natural 


.  KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  197 

law,  its  symmetry  of  growth,  its  evolution  of  all 
the  powers  of  humanity ;  the  methods  of  the  kin- 
dergarten in  careful  observation,  conscientious 
expression,  constructive  effort,  originative  power; 
all  these  we  want  at  every  stage  of  school  educa- 
tion and  the  education  of  life. 

Now,  gentle  Kindergartners,  we  all  look  to  you. 
You  have  stood,  like  the  artist  with  his  plastic  clay, 
forming  the  model  for  later  workers,  making  a 
pattern  for  those  who  await  its  inspiration  to  con- 
vert other  material  into  inspirational  forms,  that 
every  grade  of  school-work  may  be  moulded  in  its 
symmetry.  In  all  our  schools  the  teachers  now 
gather  in  childlike  attitude  at  the  door  of  the  kin- 
dergarten, saying,  "Tell  us  all  its  meaning,  instruct 
us  how  to  reach  its  spirit,  interpret  to  u's  the 
secret  of  its  philosophy."  To  meet  this  growing 
cry  in  all  its  earnestness  is  your  happy  privilege. 
Remember  that  the  child  with  its  mother  is  the 
essential  object-lesson,  the  heavenly  strain  which 
is  to  dominate  all  your  music.  Interpret  it  with 
Nature's  art  as  Froebel  sang  it  to  you ;  not  that 
you  love  Froebel  much,  but  that  you  love  nature 
more.  Do  not  turn  from  the  child  who  is  set  in 
your  midst,  even  to  the  Master  who  set  him  there : 
the  lesson  is  the  lesson  of  the  mother  and  the 
child,  as  God  expressed  love  and  nurture  in  that 
relation.  Froebel  showed  the  beautiful  picture  in 
all  its  phases  as  Jesus  showed  it  in  its  spiritual 


198     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

significance.  Seek  to  attune  your  ear  to  the 
chord,  that  you  may  render  it  singly  and  purely, 
and  in  all  its  harmony. 

How  far,  dear  Kindergartners,  have  we  come 
to  meet  you  as  yet?  You  will  surely  run  to  us 
while  yet  a  great  way  off,  and  give  us  the  embrace 
of  welcome.  We  have  felt  out  for  all  the  great 
gifts  you  offer  us,  and  such  as  we  have  been  able 
to  grasp  we  have  set  in  their  places  ;  we  know  the 
treasure  is  in  your  hands,  and  we  implore  you  to 
unlock  the  casket  which  guards  it,  that  we  may 
all  be  illuminated  by  its  radiance.  In  its  light, 
already  glimmering  through  our  dark  traditions, 
we  have  almost  broken  down  the  old  spirit  of 
school  government  by  arbitrary  compulsion  ;  we 
have  confronted  the  discipline  of  the  rattan  by  the 
discipline  of  that  love  which  is  the  fulfilling  of  the 
law;  we  have  introduced  the  natural  and  healthful 
activity  of  manual  training,  as  the  normal  method 
of  completed  thought  and  helpful  energies,  into 
our  primary  and  grammar  school  courses,  with 
observation  and  elementary  science  lessons,  con- 
necting, as  Froebel  taught,  the  child  with  nature 
through  his  sensory  and  motor  activities,  and 
thereby  with  man  and  with  God.  We  have  clay- 
modelling  and  drawing  from  kindergarten  to  high 
school,  paper-folding  and  cutting  and  constructive 
work,  —  in  wood  and  cardboard, — as  well  as  sew- 
ing and  stick-laying,  with  drawing  and  color,  in  our 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  199 

primaries,  and  sewing,  cooking,  and  carpentry  in 
the  grammar  schools.  Have  we  not  made  a 
great  stride  in  educational  philosophy  during  the 
last  decade  ?  And  for  this  we  thank  you  largely. 

The  freedom  and  order  of  nature  is  the  plan  to 
which  we  would  attain:  we  recognize  it  through 
all  its  associations  as  the  plan  which  the  kinder- 
garten has  initiated.  We  want  the  kindergarten 
in  every  primary  school  building,  that  we  may 
have  the  model  ever  before  us.  You  Kindergart- 
ners  are  no  longer  regarded  as  mistresses  of 
infant  schools,  as  the  insignificant  ushers  at  the 
gate ;  but  you  are  the  royal  seed-sowers,  the  tone- 
masters,  the  standard-bearers,  and  we  turn  to  you 
to  plant  for  us  the  seed  which  bears  an  hundred- 
fold, to  make  the  pattern  true  and  fair,  to  teach 
us  how  to  render  the  theme  in  all  its  immortal 
vibrations. 


FROEBEL'S   BIRTHDAY 


ADDRESS   BEFORE    MISS    WHEELOCK'S    KINDER- 
GARTEN-TRAINING CLASS  IN  CHAUNCY  HALL 
SCHOOL,   BOSTON 


WHEN  we  wish  to  recognize  our  indebtedness 
and  express  our  gratitude  to  those  who  have  con- 
ferred lasting  benefits  upon  us  and  upon  the 
world,  we  take  occasion  to  celebrate  their  birth- 
days and  recount  their  life-histories,  for  our  in- 
spiration and  their  honor. 

This  day  we  dedicate  to  Froebel,  as  to  one  of 
the  noblest  and  most  far-seeing  benefactors  of  the 
race.  He  had  not  only  great  insight  and  pro- 
found philosophy,  but  a  pure,  childlike  soul,  un- 
faltering faith  in  the  child's  possibilities,  and  in 
nature's  methods  of  educating  the  child.  I  like 
to  think  of  him  during  those  years  at  Keilhau, 
with  a  few  peasant  children  gathered  about  him, 
carrying  on  in  faith  and  love  his  great  work, 
which  was  to  prove  itself  to  coming  generations. 
What  an  eternal  inspiration  comes  to  us  from  the 
thought  of  such  devotion  to  an  ideal ! 

200 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  2OI 

We  think  also,  on  this  day,  of  those  who  have 
stood  by  him  and  have  had  faith  in  his  ideal  all 
through  the  darkness  and  misapprehension  of  the 
early  stages  of  the  kindergarten  ;  we  are  glad  to 
remember  with  pride  and  affection  those  who  in- 
troduced it  to  this  country,  and  declared  its  great 
and  simple  message.  Miss  Elizabeth  Peabody, 
her  sweet  voice  crying  in  the  wilderness  of  Amer- 
ican schools  for  little  children,  thrilled  us  a  gener- 
ation ago.  How  firm  and  glowing  an  enthusiasm 
she  aroused  and  disseminated  while  as  yet  no  one 
understood  Froebel  !  I  remember  her  earnest 
utterance,  her  tearful  yet  smiling  persuasions,  her 
clear  and  convincing  appeals.  She  said,  "  I  be- 
lieve this  kindergarten  principle  and  practice  is 
the  second  coming  of  Christ :  it  will  regenerate 
the  world  ;  it  reaches  all  men  through  the  mothers 
and  children."  Let  her  honored  name  be  repeated 
with  Froebel's  to-day  :  she  is  the  worthy  apostle 
of  such  a  spirit  and  doctrine  as  he  set  forth, 
and  her  beneficent  life  has  been  for  us  its  medium 
and  embodiment. 

Then  our  dear  Mrs.  Shaw,  who  poured  into  the 
work  for  years,  riches  of  love  and  faith  and 
patience ;  who  devoted  her  heart  and  thought,  as 
well  as  her  purse,  to  a  broad,  intelligent,  and  tire- 
less effort  for  this  education,  involving  also  man- 
ual training  and  useful  industries,  —  praise  and 
honor  to  her  on  this  day  of  jubilee!  Her  illustri- 


2O2     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ous  father,  Louis  Agassiz,  teacher,  is  said  to 
have  replied  to  a  man  who  called  his  attention  to 
the  pecuniary  advantage  he  might  gain,  "  I  can- 
not afford  to  make  money  ;  "  now,  when  the  earth 
that  he  had  revealed  rent  her  bosom  to  pour 
treasures  into  his  lap,  and  the  mines  he  had  dis- 
covered in  his  scientific  research  were  coined  into 
wealth  for  his  child,  she,  in  the  spirit  of  her  father, 
gives  it  to  education,  and  distils  it  in  the  labora- 
tory of  these  new  and  glorious  undertakings  for 
the  children  of  the  land. 

What  a  light  of  sweet  charities  she  throws  upon 
the  day  which  celebrates  the  advent  of  Froebel 
and  this  new  education  !  Blessed  among  women 
shall  she  be ! 

I  was  thinking,  as  the  class  went  through  the 
songs  and  games,  of  some  of  the  distinctive  fea- 
tures of  Froebel's  training,  and  was  struck  by  the 
fact  of  how  much  he  makes  of  the  hand.  It 
enters  into  all  expression.  It  becomes  an  integral 
part  in  the  development  of  the  human  being. 
The  mother's  hand  means  so  much  to  us ;  her 
busy,  nervous  hand,  always  doing  a  thousand  good 
things  for  her  family,  never  quiet  or  listless,  but 
communicating  love  and  sympathy  and  blessing  ; 
the  soft  caressing  fingers  of  the  mother,,  the  ver- 
satile activity  of  that  nervous  structure  full  of  a 
living  love, —  it  is  according  to  nature  that  Froebel 
emphasizes  its  office  and  power.  I  like  to  see  it 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  2O$ 

in  all  the  exercises  of  kindergarten.  Teacher  and 
children,  their  hands  waving  and  swinging,  man- 
ipulating, gesticulating,  communicating,  —  full  of 
thought  as  of  movement,  —  and  so  closely  related 
to  head  and  heart !  Yes,  this  unity  of  the  head, 
the  heart,  and  the  hands  is  a  very  strong  feature 
of  Froebel's  philosophy  of  education.  The  link- 
age of  forces  and  activities,  the  harmony  of  na- 
ture, is  a  very  distinctive  element  in  the  kinder- 
garten training,  and  must  be  as  distinctive  in  all 
education;  for  when  does  a  time  arrive  that  it 
is  less  important  or  less  universal  than  it  has  been 
shown  in  its  beginning  ?  And  freedom,  sponta- 
neity, unfettered  activity,  are  Froebel's  primal  con- 
ditions of  education.  This  principle  is  so  grand  we 
must  never  lose  our  conscious  participation  in  it: 
it  is  the  air  we  breathe,  the  nurture  we  must  yield 
ourselves  to,  the  glory  of  the  endless  evolution  of 
life. 

I  like  to  recognize  the  reflex  influence  of  kin- 
dergarten training  upon  those  who  are  its  sub- 
jects. That  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  things 
about  it.  I  cannot  help  recalling  that  scene  in 
the  life  of  Jesus,  as  he  enters  into  the  sacred 
chamber  where  the  young  girl  lies  amid  signs  of 
death,  and  says,  "She  is  not  dead,  but  sleeping." 
Then  taking  her  by  the  hand,  his  winning  voice 
breaking  into  a  caress,  he  says,  "  Ta-litha-cumi,"  — 
"  Maiden,  arise,"  —and  she  arises  at  his  bidding, 


204     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

and  he  leads  her  to  her  mother.  So  Froebel  says 
to  the  young  girl  who  waits  passive  and  uncon- 
scious for  the  dawning  of  womanhood,  "  '  Maiden, 
arise,'  lift  up  your  eyes  to  the  beauty  and  the 
joy  of  doing ;  enter  the  holy  gateway  of  woman- 
hood with  your  hand  in  the  hand  of  the  little 
child,  live  with  and  for  the  children  and  you  will 
reap  the  fulness  of  immortal  joy." 


SECRET    OF    THE    KINDERGARTEN. 


REMARKS  AFTER  THE  PRESENTATION  OF  FLOW- 
ERS BY  MRS.    SHAW  AT    THE    GRADUATION 
OF  HER  NORMAL  KINDERGARTEN 


DEAR  GIRLS,  —  As  you  take  these  beautiful  flow- 
ers from  the  hand  which  most  consecrates,  endears, 
and  sweetens  them  for  you,  you  can  but  keep  your 
minds  and  hearts  wide  open  to  nature  and  to  God. 
It  is  not  from  the  stagnant  pool  that  the  river  of 
life  is  supplied.  We  must  be  receptive  to  all 
broad  and  high  influences  of  thought  and  of  feel- 
ing if  we  would  minister  to  the  children's  real 
souls  and  selves.  We  have  dedicated  ourselves  to 
the  children,  —  the  hope  of  the  future,  the  promise 
of  life,  the  evolution  of  humanity.  This  conse- 
cration of  our  powers  dwarfs  all  other  outlook  of 
usefulness  or  happiness.  I  see  its  illumination 
upon  your  faces  as  you  yield  yourselves  to  the 
full  significance  of  this  hour :  it  shines  like  the 
altar  lights  through  the  chancel  windows,  telling 
of  the  worship  and  sanctity  within.  The  holiest 

205 


206     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

feeling  in  human  experience  glimmers  in  your 
eyes,  and  its  tender  suggestions  rest  upon  your 
lips  as  you  stand  with  your  offered  service  gladly 
at  the  threshold  of  womanhood. 

You  have  taken  up  the  science  of  education  at 
its  beginning,  as  disciples  of  one  who  said,  "  Come, 
let  us  live  with  our  children."  What  life  is 
sweeter,  more  repaying,  more  free  and  full  ?  I 
can  testify  that  the  supremest  moments  of  life  are 
those  in  which  we  feel  most  intensely  our  rela- 
tions to  childhood,  our  vital  connection  with  those 
who  are  nearest  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  The 
womanly  soul  is  one  with  childhood,  and  is 
ever  conscious  of  that  union.  The  "  eternally 
womanly  "  is  the  deepest  element  of  strength  in 
humanity.  The  greatest  of  men,  as  well  as 
women,  have  possessed  this  element  most  largely  : 
it  is  the  power  of  becoming  a  mirror  of  God's  love 
and  goodness,  and  a  clear  medium  of  His  thought 
and  will,  His  life  and  spirit.  This  womanliness 
of  nature  is  the  essence  of  self-renunciation,  of  ab- 
sorbed consecration,  and  of  unconscious  aspira- 
tion: it  leads  humanity  upward  and  onward,  as 
Goethe  has  said.  It  is  sweetness  and  strength, 
the  reconciliation  of  opposites,  the  spirituality  of 
all  things.  In  this  height  of  self-devotion  you 
may  become  a  part  of  the  divine  presence  in 
human  hearts :  this  is  the  mysticism  at  which 
many  cavil  in  Froebel's  philosophy ;  but  to  my 


KINDERGARTEN  ADDRESSES  2O? 

mind  it  is  its  last  and  finest  distillation,  the  very 
attar  of  roses,  of  his  educational  methods.  We 
cannot  tell  it  to  all  the  world.  I  would  not  ex- 
pose it  to  the  sneer  of  the  materialist  or  the  smile 
of  the  scoffer.  I  shall  not  flaunt  it  in  the 
face  of  the  mere  adept  in  the  technique  of  the 
kindergarten  ;  but  to  you,  the  esoteric  disciples, 
I  may  breathe  this  most  profound  secret  of  our 
calling,  —  the  indwelling  spirit  of  our  work,  —  the 
conscious  oneness  with  Nature  and  God,  which 
we  feel  at  this  sacred  moment,  and  in  which  we 
are  dedicated  to  our  glorious  life-work. 


OUR   DIVINE   RELATIONSHIPS 


EACH  organism  of  creation  dwells  in  the  midst 
of  other  organisms  to  which  it  is  related.  The 
earth  is  bound  to  its  cordon  of  sister  planets,  and 
they  all  swing  together  about  the  sun,  which  is,  in 
its  turn,  companioned  with  myriad  suns  through 
eternal  grooves  of  mutual  relationships.  Each 
molecule  has  its  centre  of  related  motion,  and 
never  vibrates  without  responding  to  forces  which 
surround  it.  We  are  all  nucleii  in  a  reticulated 
system,  drawn  hither  and  thither  by  our  attach- 
ments, and  straining  at  our  cords  like  tethered 
lambs.  We  are  bound  to  earth  and  the  physical 
universe  with  its  relentless  laws  and  conditions, 
and  to  heaven  and  the  spiritual  universe  in  an 
endless  determination  of  destiny.  We  are  ani- 
mals and  angels  by  turn,  as  we  feel  our  down- 
ward or  our  upward  attachments  growing  with 
every  tug  we  give  them ;  and  as  we  sway  within 

208 


OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS  2CX) 

their  alternate  tension,  we  are  constantly  tighten- 
ing the  cord  of  an  irrevocable  tendency. 

The  shapeless  amoeba  in  the  drop  of  water 
reaches  out  its  jelly  hand  in  response  to  the  touch 
of  every  atom  of  matter  in  its  little  sea.  Nowhere 
does  life  exist  unresponsive  and  unconnected,  but 
acts  or  reacts  constantly  upon  the  life  around  it, 
making  attachments  which  are  channels  of  growth 
and  communication.  The  mineral  elements  in 
the  stony  bosom  of  the  earth  wait  in  silent  pa- 
tience for  the  asking  plant-root  whose  delicate 
fibres  wander  and  reach  about  for  their  hidden 
strength  ;  the  anchoring  threads  intwine  them- 
selves about  the  earthy  particles,  and  with  the 
help  of  dissolving  liquids  which  percolate  the 
sandy  soil,  they  suck  up  through  their  hairy  lips 
what  they  need  ;  and  the  inorganic  mineral  which 
supplies  it  is  lifted  into  organic  being.  Earth- 
forces  drawing  on  the  one  side,  and  heavenward 
forces  on  the  other,  strive  for  mastery  ;  and  by 
transfiguring  attachments  the  mineral  becomes  a 
plant,  and  thereby  rises  in  its  estate,  its  activities, 
and  its  opportunities.  The  plant,  in  its  turn,  is 
fastened  and  limited  to  the  earth  by  the  very 
organs  that  feed  it,  but  at  the  same  time  is  ex- 
panded into  broader  growth,  fuller  life,  and  more 
complete  development  by  its  upward  growth,  its 
touch  with  light,  until  its  connections  with  ani- 
mal organisms  is  effected,  and  it  becomes  trans- 
formed to  a  higher  type  of  existence. 


210     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

The  beautiful  Medusa  sails  over  the  summer 
seas,  its  fairy  pulses  beating  to  the  rhythm  of 
wave  and  tide,  its  soft  tissues  sensitive  to  contact, 
and  reflecting  the  presence  of  organisms  as  deli- 
cate as  its  own.  Nay,  all  that  universe  of  invisi- 
ble life,  peopled  with  beings  so  diminutive  that 
only  the  microscope  or  the  tremor  they  create 
betrays  them,  is  governed  by  the  same  law  of  con- 
necting processes  and  reflex  activities  ;  bound  to 
the  lower  life  which  feeds  it,  to  the  jostling  crowds 
of  equal  life  which  accompany  it,  and  to  the  higher 
sphere  where  beckoning  hands  await  its  grasp  and 
lift  it  to  a  freer  stage  of  development. 

Like  a*  brain-cell  in  the  nerve-tissue  which  sur- 
rounds it  is  the  conscious  life  of  man,  so  sensitive 
to  the  impression  of  its  environment,  so  multiplex 
in  its  connections,  so  rich  in  opportunities  to  give 
and  to  receive.  Every  action,  every,  thought,  is 
a  vibrant  atom,  a  source  of  ether  waves  which 
expand  in  limitless  succession,  and  infringe  on 
other  orbits  of  thought  and  action,  in  eternal 
undulation.  Our  attachments  are  infinite  below, 
around,  and  above  us  ;  as  animals  we  are  para- 
sites on  the  earth,  its  most  highly  differenti- 
ated portion,  so  to  speak,  moulded  of  its  sub- 
stance, governed  by  its  laws,  and  tied  down  to  its 
range  of  outlook.  But  with  what  subtle  cords  are 
we  bound  also  to  other  realms  of  life  and  activity. 
The  magnetic  ties  which  hold  us  to  our  fellows 


OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS  211 

are  firm  as  adamant ;  we  clasp  our  friends  with 
links  of  steel,  and  love  as  strong  as  death  ;  every 
heart-beat  of  sympathy  quickens  the  current 
which  flows  between  kindred  lives,  and  all  are 
united  in  fraternal  interest  and  affection.  As  we 
strengthen  these  attachments  by  exercise,  so  we 
intensify  and  enlarge  their  activity  until  we  are 
one  with  humanity,  as  well  as  one  in  sympathy 
with  all  created  being.  We  suffer,  we  rejoice,  we 
desire,  we  strive,  we  hope,  and  we  aspire,  with  the 
universal  heart  of  nature  and  of  man  ;  and  while 
with  our  growing  connections  our  individuality 
deepens,  the  centric  forces  gathering  -strength 
from  increasing  complexity  of  structure,  by  the 
same  impulse  and  law  we  are  knit  more  closely 
and  more  widely  to  all  personalities,  and  can  help 
and  strengthen,  enlighten  and  uplift  mankind  in 
proportionate  scope  and  degree.  How  true  and 
unfailing  are  the  common  human  ties  !  Father, 
mother,  husband,  wife,  brother,  sister,  child,  and 
friend  :  surging  and  compelling  waves  of  feeling 
are  expressed  in  those  vital  words ;  they  pull  at 
our  heart-strings  through  life  and  death.  Home, 
and  native  land  ;  yes,  many  precious  lives  have 
been  laid  upon  the  altar  of  sacrifice  for  devotion 
to  these  simple  and  pure  attachments.  But  while 
we  hold  so  dear  this  clustering  knot  of  earthly 
loves,  we  cannot  forget  with  what  eternal  strands 
we  are  connected  with  the  world  beyond  the  veil 


212     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

of  sense.  .  The  whole  creation  is  travailing  with 
groping  hands  to  lift  itself  by  those  heavenly 
cords. 

The  brown  beetle  climbs  the  swaying  reed,  hesi- 
tating between  the  dark  pool's  accustomed  bed 
and  the  bright  unknown  sphere  above,  which 
breathes  its  mysterious  hope  to  him  as  he  ascends, 
panting  to  be  free :  his  lower  environment  and 
the  organism  to  which  it  was  adapted  recede  ;  he 
bursts  his  prison  bars  and  is  glorified.  The  dull, 
inert  mass  of  mineral  parts  with  its  lifeless  parti- 
cles, by  disintegration  and  by  dissolution  is  pre- 
pared for  its  exaltation,  is  drawn  upward  to  take 
its  place  in  the  progress  of  evolved  conditions 
and  structure,  and  is  on  the  path  toward  conscious 
freedom  :  it  has  multiplied  its  attachments,  inten- 
sified its  activities,  and  is  devoted  henceforth  to 
more  varied  and  exalted  uses  ;  it  is  rising  on  the 
stepping-stones  of  its  dead  self,  as  we  also  are  to 
rise,  and  fills  a  more  harmonious  part  in  the  uni- 
versal life.  The  plant  grows  and  reaches  forth 
its  leafage,  its  bloom,  and  its  fruitage  to  the  sun- 
shine, feeding  the  senses  with  beauty  and  fra- 
grance, the  heart  with  tenderness,  and  the  soul 
with  the  expression  of  Divine  love.  For,  as  we 
consider  the  lilies  of  the  field  we  see  how  they 
minister  to  our  spiritual  needs,  and  we  assimilate 
not  only  the  physical  nourishment  they  offer  us 
but  the  deeper  re-enforcement  of  symbolic  truth  ; 


OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS  213 

and  so  the  plant,  having  entered  into  the  life  of 
many,  has  taken  its  place  as  a  round  in  the  lad- 
der, and  lifts  itself  up  by  its  highest  attachments. 
Like  the  mineral,  the  vegetable,  and  the  ani- 
mal, we  too  are  growing  in  the  line  of  our  attach- 
ments. If  those  of  the  earth  and  sense  life  are 
stronger,  we  are  growing  of  the  earth,  earthy  and 
sensual.  The  physical  life  must  be  rooted,  but 
must  spring  up  above  the  ground  for  its  normal 
growth.  Social  sympathies  may  be  strong  and 
fervent,  but  not  limited  to  this  life  nor  bounded 
by  this  horizon.  We  must  throw  out  attachments 
toward  the  divine,  like  the  tendrils  which  draw  the 
vine  to  its  support.  These  avenues  of  our  com- 
merce with  that  heavenly  coast  must  be  free  and 
clear  if  we  would  receive  the  priceless  treasures 
which  freight  the  white-winged  argosies  of  faith. 
These  tides  of  communication  must  be  unob- 
structed, that  our  spiritual  associations  may  be 
close  and  responsive ;  for  we  are  workers  together 
with  God,  and  our  relationships  are  reciprocal  in 
that  direction  as  well  as  any  other.  According  to 
the  methods  in  the  natural  world,  which  are  but 
patterns  of  the  spiritual,  man  himself  must  be- 
come the  expression  of  God  if  he  receives  His 
spirit  and  is  nourished  by  His  word.  This  is  reli- 
gion ;  the  binding  of  the  ties  between  God  and  man, 
as  the  only  condition  of  spiritual  growth.  Who 
can  tell  how  many  and  how  close  these  divine 


214     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

relationships  of  the  soul  may  be  ?  As  the  blind 
can  know  nothing  and  be  told  no.thing  of  light,  so 
the  soul  that  has  not  fixed  its  divine  attachments  is 
not  only  ignorant  of,  but  beyond  the  possibility  of 
apprehending,  divine  realities. 

The  little  child  easily  recognizes  these  unseen 
connections  ;  but  they  become  severed  by  distrust, 
withered  by  disuse,  atrophied  by  the  withdrawal 
of  all  life's  energies  to  the  lower  associations  of  self 
and  sense.  How  shall  we  stimulate  and  strengthen 
them  ?  how  keep  the  vital  current  flowing  freely, 
with  invigorating  power  from  heaven,  into  our 
human  souls  ?  If  we  would  grow  upward  we  must 
build  the  organic  fibres  of  that  many-stranded 
cord  which  reaches  toward  the  infinite ;  we  must 
see  the  eternal,  absolute  beauty  until  we  long  for 
it ;  we  must  feel  the  divine  goodness  and  love  un- 
til we  aspire  to  it  with  all  our  hearts  ;  we  must 
subordinate  those  connections  which  draw  all  our 
life-forces  to  self,  which  strengthen  ambition,  or 
feed  covetousness,  pride,  or  any  form  of  animalism ; 
we  must  feed  the  soul  by  meditation  and  high 
ideals  of  duty,  exercise  it  by  prayer  and  by  right 
conduct.  All  things  are  strengthened  by  use : 
aspiration,  love,  worship,  communion  with  God, 
must  grow  with  practice,  like  all  activities,  and  be 
built  up  by  habit,  as  structure  grows  by  exercise 
of  its  functions.  We  cannot  feed  the  lower 
appetites  and  preserve  the  divine  activities ;  if 


OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS  21$ 

we    are    growing    downwards,    we    shall     shrink 
upwards. 

How  forcibly  does  evolution  teach  us  this  doc- 
trine of  struggle  against  the  dominance  of  animal 
powers  and  activities,  of  conquest  over  the  lower 
nature,  from  which  we  would  escape  and  free  our- 
selves, like  the  butterfly  from  the  chrysalis.  Deny 
the  opportunities,  cut  off  the  connections,  break 
the  bonds.  Ah,  that  is  hard  !  Is  it  not  impossi- 
ble by  the  effort  of  the  human  will  alone,  un- 
inspired by  something  which  may  come  to  us 
through  those  other  ties  of  the  soul  with  God  and 
His  spirit  ?  It  is  more  according  to  the  methods 
of  life  in  the  natural  world  that  this  victory  over 
self  and  the  world  should  come  through  construc- 
tive agencies,  through  a  firmer  hold  to  the  divine 
impulses  of  faith  in  God,  in  truth,  in  purity,  in 
love,  and  in  law  —  which  we  learn  by  observation 
of  nature  and  life.  If  you  want  the  vine  to  cling 
to  its  right  support,  make  its  tendrils  coil  more 
tenaciously  about  it,  and  as  they  strengthen  and 
the  plant  draws  closer  and  firmer  in  that  direc- 
tion, and  holds  up  its  aspiring  crown,  the  oppos- 
ing tendrils  will  wither  and  break  from  the  false 
support,  and  the  gardener's  knife  will  not  be 
demanded.  In  all  dealing  with  wrong  doing, 
with  degraded  and  unawakened  moral  life,  with 
vice  and  the  grievous  havoc  of  sin,  we  should 
first  begin  the  constructive  work  of  grace  and 


2l6     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

love  toward  God ;  fix  some  attachments  heaven- 
ward, or  at  least  arouse  instincts  and  motives 
that  are  human  rather  than  brutish.  Get  the 
human  being  on  his  feet  working  for  his  fellows, 
seeking  the  light,  struggling  for  something  higher, 
and  feeling  after  God,  as  the  wandering  tendrils  do 
for  a  support,  if  haply  they  might  find  Him  who  is 
not  far  from  any  one.  But  even  God  must  have  a 
hand  held  out  for  help  that  He  may  help,  must 
hear  a  cry  for  love  that  His  love  may  be  conveyed, 
and  an  open  ear  before  His  truth  can  be  commu- 
nicated. 

We  are  driven  to  prayer  when  earthly  losses 
sunder  our  earthly  ties,  and  then  we  hold  harder 
by  heavenly  supports.  Anguish  which  can  receive 
no  earthly  consolation  drives  us  to  a  •  heavenly 
comforter ;  then,  if  we  have  not  utterly  cast  off 
those  divine  connections,  they  will  draw  us  to 
closer  and  more  perfect  union  with  the  sources  of 
spiritual  life. 

How  strong  and  full  and  free  flows  the  life 
which  is  by  faith,  when  its  tide  is  fed  by  constant 
trust  and  love  and  consciousness  of  the  divine 
presence !  If  we  were  to  let  it  swell  and  pervade 
our  nature,  if  we  were  to  place  no  obstacle  in  its 
way,  but  drink  in  all  its  inspiring  elixir,  we  might 
realize  the  promises  of  Christ ;  we  cannot  forbear 
the  conviction  that  this  would  be  the  logical  result, 
the  real  lesson  of  the  material  universe,  as  the 


OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS  21 J 

expression  of  the  laws  of  God  and  His  methods  of 
work.  The  vital  human  attachments,  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world,  would  pour  their  wealth 
of  love  and  revelation  into  our  hearts  ;  their 
sympathy  from  beyond  the  veil  would  be  sensible 
to  our  souls  in  all  the  struggle  of  life.  "  We  ask 
them  whence  their  victory  came  ?  "  the  strength 
of  their  experience  is  communicated  to  us  ;  the 
invisible  company  of  ministering  spirits  and  a 
great  cloud  of  witnesses  would  surround  us  as  we 
go  up  to  the  heavenly  places  prepared  for  us. 

Behold  with  what  a  cloud 

Of  witnesses  surrounded, 
Our  earth-life  in  its  shroud 

And  chrysalis  is  bounded  !  • 

Their  asphodel  they  wave, 

Their  lilies  lift  before  us; 
By  cradle  and  by  grave 

They  wave  their  white  wings  o'er  us. 

Angelic  ranks  attend, 

And  radiant  hosts  are  flying, 
Their  ready  help  to  lend 

For  living  as  for  dying. 
Our  hearts  are  waxen  gross, 

Our  ears  are  dull  of  hearing ; 
Our  eyes  are  dim  and  close 

To  their  divine  appearing. 

Yet  still  they  stand  and  wait 

At  every  golden  portal ; 
By  every  opening  gate 

With  messages  immortal. 


2l8     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

O  God-awakened  heart, 

Receive  the  heavenly  vision, 
And  make  thy  life  a  part 

Of  that  fair  life  elysian  1 

They  whose  human  connections  are  all  strong, 
self-forgetting,  and  helpful,  cannot  so  easily  be- 
lieve in  God,  in  immortality,  in  the  deathless- 
ness  of  the  dead  one  whom  they  mourn  ?  No,  it 
is  not  he  who  has  died,  but  they  whom  he  has  left 
behind,  their  connections  cut  off,  their  loved  one 
vanished,  and  no  divine  relationships  to  hold  them 
to  the  life  of  the  soul.  They  have  indeed  a  terri- 
ble struggle  to  put  out  again  from  the  indurated 
stems  of  earthly  growth  those  tendrils  they  so 
relentlessly  cut  away  when  they  dismissed  their 
faith  in  God,  destroyed  their  habit  of  prayer,  dis- 
carded holy  thoughts  learned  at  their  mother's 
knee,  despised  those  tender  yearnings  of  the 
divine  spirit  which  beat  so  strenuously  as  they  sat 
by  the  dying-bed,  and  threw  away,  at  the  com- 
mand of  a  materialistic  philosophy,  all  the  pre- 
cious communings  of  which  they  had  dreamed  ; 
then,  indeed,  was  broken  the  golden  bowl,  and 
parted  the  silver  cord.  Can  they  recover  and 
rebuild,  and  be  born  again  into  spiritual  life  ? 
Yes  ;  but  not  without  cutting  down  and  pruning 
all  self-assertion,  purging  all  pride  of  reason,  all 
determination  to  arrange  the  universe  for  self. 
This  is  the  distinctive  epoch  and  preparation. 


OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS  2 1C) 

The  gate  is  narrow  which  now  leads  to  life. 
It  is  hard  to  regenerate  the  proud  spirit  which 
feels  that  it  can  grow  and  fulfil  the  purposes 
of  life  without  the  divine  relationships  into 
which  humanity  may  come.  Deadly  sin  is  not  so 
great  a  barrier  to  divine  possibilities  of  life  as  a 
heart  which  cannot  repent,  which  cannot  prostrate 
itself  in  humility ;  which  cannot  be  thrown,  with 
all  the  forces  of  imploring  desire  and  utter  aban- 
donment of  self  and  the  world,  upon  those  strands 
which  hold  it  to  a  higher  life  ;  then  faith  has  a  path 
over  which  it  can  send  re-enforcements  to  the  deso- 
late heart,  the  healing  love  of  God  flows  into  the 
wounded  spirit,  and  its  fibres  are  knit  in  cords  of 
trust  and  hope,  joining  the  soul  to  infinite  sup- 
plies. 

We  bless  God  that,  through  all  necessary  tribu- 
lation, through  every  unspared  pang  of  growth, 
and  every  sharp  and  needed  pain  of  pruning, 
through  every  sundering  of  ties  too  strong  for 
our  spiritual  integrity,  and  the  dissolution  of 
every  relationship  which  could  not  consist  with 
our  supreme  relationship  to  Him,  He  has  bound 
us  so  on  the  side  of  our  Divine  connections 
that  death  shall  hardly  change  our  consciousness  ; 
because  we  rejoice  in  Him  all  the  day,  work  in 
His  strength  and  presence,  and  rest  in  Him,  and 
know  that  when  He  who  is  our  life  shall  appear, 
we  shall  also  appear  with  Him  in  glory. 


220  .THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

My  daily  round  I  tread 

On  heights  serene, 
And  nightly  lay  my  head 
On  angel-guarded  bed 
By  love  o'ercanopied, 

Felt,  though  unseen. 

What  matter  how  the  task 

Employ  my  hands  ? 
God  makes  the  work  His  mask, 
So  in  His  smile  I  bask, 
And  find  that  when  I  ask 

The  promise  stands. 

I  entered  in  the  shade, 

Shrinking,  alone. 
Let  this  cup  pass,  I  prayed, 
When  lo !  Christ  stood  arrayed. 
I  could  not  be  afraid : 

The  darkness  shone. 

When  in  the  fire  of  pain 

I  agonize, 

If  neither  spot  nor  stain 
Shall  from  its  purge  remain, 
I'll  covet  it  again, 

For  sacrifice. 

And  when  to  watch  and  wait 

Befits  my  soul, 

Some  sweeter  word  than  Fate 
Still  keeps  my  heart  elate, 
Gladly  I  trust  my  state 

To  His  control. 

Poised  and  sustained,  I  rest, 

Whate'er  betide, 
By  life's  hard  duties  pressed, 
My  weakness  all  confessed, 
Stayed  on  a  Heavenly  Guest, 

And  satisfied. 


DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS          •    221 

It  is  all  promised  and  prophesied  in  the  first  step  ; 
the  limitless  fulness  is  potentially  in  the  first  point 
of  contact.  The  beginning  of  the  life-union  with 
the  divine  insures  progressive  immortality.  The 
path  is  ever  ascending,  ever  brightening,  the  transi- 
tions are  almost  imperceptible,  the  partition-lines 
between  type  and  type  are  delicate  and  impalpable, 
but  the  change  is  an  eternal  one,  from  glory 
to  glory.  When  the  attachments  with  heaven 
are  begun,  a  ladder  is  let  down  from  heaven  to 
earth,  and  the  angels  ascend  and  descend  forever- 
more,  our  souls  "  run  up  with  joy  the  shining 
way  "  from  every  duty,  from  every  sorrow  and 
trial,  as  well  as  from  every  delight,  from  every  form 
of  beauty,  every  chord  of  harmony,  every  ecstasy 
of  living,  every  bounty  of  giving.  We  learn  to 
retrace  our  path  from  every  wandering  and  forget- 
ting, by  the  tear  of  penitence,  by  the  sad  task  of 
confession,  by  deep  abhorrence  of  our  degradation  ; 
through  every  loss  and  every  yearning  we  find  our 
approaches  to  God  and  angels  opened.  Gabriel 
comes  to  give  us  a  message,  as  he  came  to  Daniel 
praying;  Jesus  comes  to  say  with  voice  celestial,  "I 
will  not  leave  you  comfortless  ;  I  will  come  to  you." 

We  see  those  who  live  in  the  full  privilege  of 
these  divine  relationships  unafraid  and  at  peace  ; 
we  see  them  reach  the  valley  of  death  glad  to  near 
their  home  :  they  are  in  familiar  and  dear  pres- 
ences ;  every  step  has  been  a  conquest  over  the  hin- 


222     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE   NEW  EDUCATION 

drances  of  this  life,  and  no  attachment  to  earth  is  so 
riveted  as  to  withstand  the  growing  strength  and 
drawing  force  of  their  vital  attachments  to  heaven  ; 
even  death  is  swallowed  up  in  victory,  and  the 
human  soul  is  free  at  last  to  break  all  its  fetters, 
and  escape  from  its  darker  and  narrower  environ- 
ment into  the  fuller  life  and  glory  of  immortality. 

So  the  bursting  seed  of  the  plant  sets  free  the 
embryo  to  its  development  of  beauty ;  so  the 
quivering  butterfly  spreads  its  new  wings  to  the 
summer  air  ;  so  the  dragon-fly  springs  from  its 
shattered  case  to  a  glorious  vision  of  light  and 
freedom. 

To  the  lower  orders  of  animal  life  their  own  en- 
vironment seems  the  farthest  reach  of  being ;  the 
sphere  beyond  is  to  them  unseen,  and  suggested 
only  by  their  unconscious  predilections,  and  the  in- 
stinctive struggle  and  tendency  toward  the  devel- 
opment which  may  lead  them  into  its  silent  land, 
up  to  its  shadowy  verge,  over  its  dreamy  border. 
The  margin  of  the  unknown  confronts  us  every- 
where, and  we  peer  into  the  mists  and  clouds  for  a 
ray  of  light  to  reveal  its  realities.  But  only  by 
our  longings  we  learn  to  struggle  toward  it,  till  we 
throw  out  our  tentacles  of  faith  and  have  an 
anchor  fast  in  its  nearing  line  of  separation ;  then 
we  grow  surer  as  we  feel  every  strain  of  the 
cable  which  holds  us  to  its  shores ;  even  the  pull 
of  all  other  attachments  but  strengthens  this 


OUR  DIVINE   RELATIONSHIPS  22$ 

to  the  beyond,  because  it  grows  by  every  effort 
which  it  resists.  So  when  we  swing  away  at  last 
from  other  moorings,  we  cleave  to  this  which 
offers  the  richest  and  freest  conditions  of  nourish- 
ment ;  we  grow  to  the  demands  of  its  life-forces, 
and  increase  our  capability  of  receiving  it.  We 
change  from  grace  to  grace  and  from  power  to 
power  ;  for  that  is  the. method  of  evolution  as  God 
shows  it  in  the  natural  world  and  in  human  life. 
The  plane  of  our  activities  rises  and  broadens, 
the  air  is  purer  and  more  elastic  ;  we  drink  it  in 
and  are  transformed  into  the  life  which  is  sus- 
tained by  it,  and  adopt  the  relationships  which  it  in- 
volves. While  we  wait  for  sight,  and  live  by  faith 
alone,  we  yet  experience  the  emotions  and  assur- 
ance which  sight  might  supply. 

"  'Tis  by  the  faith  of  joys  to  come 
We  walk  through  deserts  dark  as  night." 

Shall  we  discredit  this  divine  attachment  we 
feel  so  strongly,  because  our  organs  of  sense  are 
not  adapted  to  its  recognition  ?  Eye  hath  not 
seen,  nor  ear  heard  these  things,  because  they  are 
not  cognizable  to  these  functions ;  but  when 
some  great  awe  strikes  the  soul  through  mighty 
works  or  processes  of  nature,  then  we  become 
more  conscious  of  the  unseen  than  of  the  seen,  and 
we  know  that  it  is  the  unseen  which  is  most  real. 
When  we  are  overwhelmed  by  trouble  and  all  the 


224     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

earthly  lights  go  out,  when  the  darkness  is  thick 
and  we  know  not  where  to  look,  we  awake  to  the 
great  reality  of  our  needs,  and  God  answers  when  we 
call.  When  the  voices  we  love  grow  silent,  and  the 
voices  of  the  world  only  mock  our  loneliness,  we  can 
utter  with  deepest  truth  of  conviction,  "  Lord  to 
whom  shall  we  go  ?  Thou  hast  the  words  of  eter- 
nal life."  We  know  by  a  deeper  than  physical 
sense,  and  by  a  greater  than  material  satisfaction, 
that  we  are  rooted  and  built  up  in  Him,  and  that  if 
we  will  abide  in  Him,  He  will  abide  in  us.  We 
gravitate  to  Him.  God  is  nearer  than  our  wish, 
stronger  than  our  needs,  larger  than  our  capacity. 
How  those  cords  of  attachment  thrill  with  every 
heart-throb  !  how  they  vibrate  in  the  strong  tide  of 
love  which  sweeps  through  them  ! 

We  are  possessed  by  the  inspiration  which  come 
through  those  relationships.  It  is  no  longer  we 
who  work  and  will,  but  God  who  \vorketh  in  us. 
We  hide  in  His  bosom,  and  only  seek  to  be  the 
medium  of  His  grace  to  others,  to  be  a  link  in  the 
chain  of  divine  relationships,  to  minister  between 
the  seen  and  the  unseen ;  and  so  we  begin  to  learn 
the  spirit  of  Christ,  and  to  be  in  our  degree  the 
way,  the  truth,  and  the  life  for  man.  And  at  last 
when  "safely  moored,  life's  perils  o'er,"  we  reach 
that  land  for  which  our  senses  shall  have  bud- 
ded, we  shall  find  the  airs  easy  to  inhale  for  which 
our  structure  and  functions  shall  have  developed, 


OUR  DIVINE  RELATIONSHIPS  22$ 

and  shall  be  free  to  make  all  our  attachments 
divine ;  then  with  angels  and  archangels  and  all 
the  company  of  heaven,  with  the  dear  ones  who 
wait  to  welcome  us  home,  with  all  who  have 
passed  out  of  this  limited  enviroment  of  earth, 
we  shall  still  climb  upward  toward  the  perfect 
light  and  glory. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  REPORT  OF  BOARD 
OF  SUPERVISORS,   1889 


THE  welfare  of  our  schools  depends  upon  nothing 
so  much  as  upon  the  fitness  of  its  teachers  for  their 
work,  each  teacher  having  the  responsibility  of 
from  fifty  to  sixty  children.  All  the  certificated 
teachers,  both  normal  school  graduates  and  those 
who  have  passed  the  Supervisors'  examination,  on 
receiving  appointments  become  permanent  teach- 
ers only  after  the  final  test  of  supervision. 

Of  course  the  intellectual  qualifications,  both 
professional  and  general,  make  up  an  important 
element  in  a  judgment  of  the  fitness  of  a  candi- 
date ;  physical  and  personal  characteristics  also 
enter  largely  into  the  general  estimate  of  the  quali- 
ties of  the  teacher ;  but  above  all,  character  must 
remain  the  vital  and  decisive  element  for  consider- 
ation :  the  communicative  force,  the  moral  power, 
the  virtue  which  continually  emanates  from  the 
teacher,  is  the  real  moulding  agency  of  our  schools. 
No  superficial  qualifications,  such  as  familiarity 
with  methods  and  subjects  of  instruction,  or  fac- 

226 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS      22*J 

ulty  in  manipulating  machinery  and  attending  to 
the  details  of  class-work,  can  be  regarded  as  in  any 
degree  a  substitute  for  moral  power  and  magnetic 
force  of  character  in  the  candidate  ;  especially  in 
the  case  of  the  male  assistants,  who  by  natural 
promotion  may  early  become  candidates  for  the 
position  of  sub-master  or  master,  is  the  most  con- 
scientious dealing  imperative  with  the  Supervisor, 
who  must  be  helpful,  patient,  kind,  frank,  and 
faithful  with  the  young  teacher,  but  should  never 
be  betrayed  into  a  course  which  would  fix  in,  our 
schools  an  unhealthful  moral  influence,  or  rivet  a 
connection  likely  to  hinder  the  progressive  devel- 
opment of  the  young. 

If  the  child  is  driven  to  study,  if  he  is  forced 
to  take  up  his  lesson  as  a  task,  and  obliged  to  at- 
tend to  it  for  fear  of  penalty,  we  all  understand 
that  he  is  under  a  mode  of  government  in  which 
there  is  not  the  first  element  of  growth  and  de- 
velopment, whether  mental  or  moral.  The  child 
grows  from  within,  outward ;  the  motive  to  study 
must  spring  from  the  natural  desire  to  know, 
quickened  by  the  presentation  of  the  object  of 
knowledge.  The  object  must  be  within  reach  of 
the  child's  sympathy,  comprehension,  and  natural 
curiosity,  and  must  be  so  presented  as  to  arouse 
that  curiosity ;  or,  if  the  pupil  is  old  enough  to  have 
discovered  that  he  is  dependent  on  the  recorded 
observation  of  others  for  some  facts  he  needs, 


228     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

then  he  should  be  stimulated  to  the  possession  of 
those  results  by  appreciating  their  value  to  him  in 
his  preparation  for  life.  A  teacher  who  is  full  of 
his  subject  communicates  unconsciously  this  en- 
thusiasm of  interest  and  study. 

It  is  comparatively  easy  to  learn  when  the  desire 
is  thoroughly  aroused.  Apprehension  and  memory 
respond  quickly  to  desire.  Other  motives,  such 
as  love  for  the  teacher  and  conscientious  devotion 
to  duty,  may  sometimes  enter  into  the  motive  to 
study ;  but  the  spontaneous  desire  to  know  will 
always  spring  forward  toward  any  new  subject  of 
knowledge  which  meets  the  student's  stage  of  in- 
telligence. So,  in  the  mode  of  government,  the 
motive-power  must  be  an  inspiration  ;  the  teacher 
must  start  into  operation  some  agency  more 
radical,  inclusive,  and  expansive  than  any  exter- 
nal compulsion.  The  higher  activities  must  be 
aroused,  if  not  directly,  yet  through  the  interac- 
tion and  correlation  of  other  activities,  beginning 
with  such  right  activities  as  the  child  is  easily  im- 
pelled to  ;  for  the  child  is  a  unity  of  diverse  ele- 
ments, every  one  reticulated  with  every  other ; 
and  work  of  the  hands  makes  easier  work  of  the 
head  and  work  of  the  heart,  by  the  law  of  the  dif- 
fusion of  energy  throughout  every  part  of  one 
organism. 

Also  the  laws  which  govern  the  physical  nature 
are  continuous  in  the  realm  of  intellectual  and 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS       229 

moral  growth.     All  structure  grows  by  the  exer- 
cise of   its  functions.     We  must,  therefore,  build 
up  the  moral  nature  by  developing  the  moral  ac- 
tivities.    This  is  done  by  arousing  the  feelings  and 
the  will,  and  directing  them  into  the  right  channels, 
as  well  as  by  giving  moral  ideals  to  the  apprehen- 
sion.    Besides  all  that  has  been  done  toward  in- 
forming the  moral  nature  in  our  schools,  such  as 
the  religious  exercises   of   the    school,  the    silent 
influence  of  the  character  of  the  teacher,  the  max- 
ims of  good  morals,  the  memorizing  of  gems  from 
the  best  literature,  the  reading  of  biographies  of 
the  wise  and  great,  and  the  requirement  of  right 
behavior  in  the  school-room,  we  now  add  pleasure- 
able  and  useful  occupation  of  the  child  during  the 
time  of  its  school-hours.     This  is  provided  partly 
by  supplementary  reading,  and  partly  by  exercises 
connected   with   the   regular  lessons.     But  when 
these  fail  to   interest   or  stimulate,   what  further 
can  we  offer  for  the  child's  moral  growth  ?     The 
department  of  elementary  science  is  placed  in  our 
schools  as  one  important  means  to  that  end.     It 
brings  the  child  into  loving  and  thoughtful  com- 
munion with  nature  ;  it  introduces  him  to  the  forms 
of  wonder  and  beauty  about  him,  and  leads  to  the 
consciousness  of  the  divine  love  and  power  which 
surround  him  ;  it  reveals  to  him  the  fatherhood  of 
God  and  the  brotherhood,  not  only  of  man,  but  of 
all  created  beings  ;  it  cultivates  his  aesthetic  sense, 


230     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

which  is  the  connecting  link  between  the  intellect- 
ual and  moral  powers,  and  awakens  in  him  those 
activities  which  express  the  functions  of  the  soul. 
In  addition  to  this  observation  of  nature,  which 
ministers  to  his  sense  for  beauty,  and  thus  opens 
the  way  to  moral  progress,  we  must  also  provide  for 
the  practical  exercise  of  his  constructive  faculties 
and  creative  power,  through  various  kinds  of  man- 
ual accomplishment  which  shall  put  him  into  help- 
ful relations  with  his  fellows,  thus  offering  right 
scope  and  opportunity  for  those  stored-up  energies, 
which  will  work  evil,  if  not  good,  for  a  human  be- 
ing, whether  man  or  child. 

The  science  of  pedagogy  and  the  modern  devel- 
opments of  physiological  psychology,  with  the  light 
thrown  by  modern  science  upon  the  development 
of  the  race,  and  of  the  child  as  an  epitome  of  the 
race,  have  all  contributed  to  a  change  of  method  in 
education,  which  has  been  growing  so  rapidly  into 
our  courses  of  study  and  means  of  training  as  to 
bring  about  an  entire  change  of  front  of  our  edu- 
cational forces. 

We  recognize  the  fact  that  we  are  on  our  way 
from  animal  to  human  living,  struggling  with  ani- 
mal propensities  and  lower  organic  tendencies,  in 
our  reach  after  the  higher  and  truly  human  activi- 
ties, yet  with  a  new  and  distinctive  germ  of  evolu- 
tionary power  within  us.  If  we  but  glance  at  the 
material  in  our  schools,  —  a  heterogeneous  mass  of 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS       231 

growing  humanity,  children  of  every  nationality, 
of  every  social  grade,  of  every  form  of  political 
and  religious  inheritance,  —  we  begin  to  under- 
stand the  era  in  which  we  live,  —  the  era  of  a  vast 
phenomenal  migration  from  the  Old  World  into  the 
New,  from  the  old  civilizations  and  barbarisms  into 
new  possibilities  of  growth,  larger  freedom  of  life, 
broader  relationships,  and  from  the  mediaeval  phil- 
osophy of  education  to  the  inductive  methods  and 
unobstructed  outlook  of  the  modern  philosophy. 
When  we  comprehend  this  grand  era  of  educational 
opportunity,  we  shall  accommodate  our  educational 
resources  more  exactly  to  its  conditions  and  its 
spirit  ;  we  shall  provide  more  intelligently  for  the 
half-awakened  little  human  animal,  now  almost 
wholly  within  the  grasp  of  his  physical  instincts  ; 
we  shall  give  him  help  to  arouse  his  human  ambi- 
tions, to  stimulate  his  human  interests,  and  to 
kindle  into  flame  that  little  spark  of  Promethean 
fire  which  makes  him  human.  By  all  that  the  child 
can  be  and  do  beyond  what  the  young  animal  can 
be  and  do,  we  must  lead  him  to  believe  in  his  hu- 
man superiority.  We  must  give  to  our  moral  train- 
ing the  benefit  of  the  differentiation  of  man  as  a 
tool-using  animal,  and  put  tools  into  the  hands  of 
the  children,  that  they  may  think  their  thoughts 
out  into  conscious  completion,  into  tangible  form, 
not  only  through  the  power  of  human  speech,  but 
the  power  of  human  handling  and  shaping,  of  fin- 


232     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ishing  and  beautifying.  A  boy  who  takes  a  tool 
and  produces  something  from  raw  material  is  so 
much  the  more  a  boy  rather  than  a  brute,  and  more 
likely  than  before  to  leave  off  brutish  ways.  To 
work  with  the  hands  is  to  be  in  process  of  evolu- 
tion toward  humanity ;  to  embody  a  thought  for 
the  benefit  of  others  is  to  be  in  progress  of  evolu- 
tion toward  perfect  humanity.  To  think  is  not 
merely  to  dream  ;  if  the  thought  is  not  expressed 
it  falls  back  into  vagueness,  and  is  not  built  into 
the  mental  or  moral  organism  :  it  must  be  com- 
pleted, cleared  up,  expressed,  and  communicated, 
in  order  to  contribute  to  intellectual  or  moral 
growth.  The  physical,  intellectual,  and  moral 
steps  are  all  on  one  road,  in  an  ascending  scale, 
but  equally  on  the  way  to  true  and  integral  educa- 
tion ;  there  is  no  partition  between  them.  To 
teach  the  fingers  skill  in  order  to  give  to  the  thought 
precision,  to  put  high  motive  behind  all  expression 
in  order  to  involve  moral  functions,  and  to  learn  to 
work  for  others  through  the  exercise  of  distinc- 
tively human  activities,  is  the  way  to  better  action, 
both  mental  and  moral,  and  in  that  way  lie  the 
methods  of  manual  occupation,  of  useful  industries, 
of  the  cultivation  of  all  human  activities  as  step- 
ping-stones in  educational  progress. 

The  present  educational  trend  is  the  outcome  of 
the  philosophy  of  evolution.  It  involves  the  idea 
of  harmonious  development :  the  body,  mind,  and 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS      233 

soul  must  act  and  grow  together,  not  in  identical, 
but  rightly  subordinated  relations,  in  a  harmony  of 
degrees  and  attuned  elements;  the  body  as  the 
medium  and  instrument  of  the  mind,  and  both  as 
the  instruments  of  moral  supremacy.  Let  the  child 
think  not  only  with  his  brain  but  through  his  fin- 
gers, and  put  his  ideals  and  affections  into  his 
work,  and  we  shall  see  him  grow  human,  and 
develop  into  a  moral  agent,  sloughing  off  the 
chrysalis  of  his  embryonic  stage,  and  taking  to 
himself  the  birthright  of  his  higher  activities. 

This  aspect  of  educational  purpose  and  scope 
has  governed  this  Board  in  dealing  with  the  school- 
curriculum,  in  criticising  modes  of  government, 
and  in  suggesting  methods  of  intellectual  and 
moral  instruction.  The  mode  of  government  espe- 
cially, as  indicative  of  the  whole  educational  spirit 
and  outlook,  has  during  the  past  year  claimed  our 
attention.  The  arbitrary  and  external  method  has 
lingered  too  long  in  many  of  our  schools.  It  may 
be  called  the  cave  method,  where  light  enters 
through  but  one  narrow  aperture,  and  all  is  repres- 
sion, limitation,  and  discouragement  :  it  belongs  to 
epochs  of  darkness  and  disintegration.  We  have 
observed  school-rooms  in  our  midst,  under  the 
shadow  of  this  repression,  where  corporal  punish- 
ment is  but  one  feature  of  a  mode  of  government 
that  is  artificial  as  opposed  to  natural,  mechanical 
as  opposed  to  inspirational,  despotic  as  opposed  to 


234     THE  SPIRIT  OF  TfIE  NEW  EDUCATION 

parental,  and  antagonistic  as  opposed  to  sympa- 
thetic. The  monthly  reports  of  the  grammar  mas- 
ters advertise  but  too  obviously  the  prevalence  of 
these  effete  modes  of  government  as  indicated  by 
the  number  of  corporal  punishments,  —  a  method 
of  discipline  contrary  to  the  philosophy  and  spirit 
of  an  enlightened  age,  and  the  form  of  political 
government  for  which  we  must  train  the  young 
American. 

We  turn  from  these  discouraging  subjects  of 
consideration  to  those  schools  which  have  found 
out  better  ways,  and  report  their  various  plans  with 
a  great  sense  of  relief  that  a  high  dominant  pur- 
pose has  been  seized  and  used  as  a  lever  by  so 
many  of  our  masters  to  lift  their  schools  into  the 
light.  One  class-room,  for  example,  is  built  upon 
the  democratic  idea  of  government,  as  far  as  pos- 
sible. It  recognizes  the  first  conditions  of  right 
government  to  be  sympathy,  mutual  helpfulness, 
and  a  common  aim.  It  enlists  all  its  pupils  in  the 
best  welfare  of  the  school  by  delegating  a  tenta- 
tive authority  ;  the  teacher  at  times  gives  the  boys 
and  girls  a  chance  to  try  popular  government. 
Participation  in  this  governing  power  arouses  a 
sense  of  responsibility  which  is  very  strengthening 
to  the  moral  nature  ;  the  school-room  becomes  a 
little  republic,  and  assumes  the  administration  of 
its  own  affairs,  and  the.  formulation  and  imposition 
of  its  own  rules  of  discipline,  which  are  usually 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS       235 

more  severe  and  more  rigidly  observed,  even  by 
the  most  unruly  pupils,  than  the  teacher  would 
require  ;  the  class  thus  makes  and  executes  its  own 
laws  to  very  good  purpose,  and  learns  a  practical 
lesson  in  civics,  while  developing  a  true  manhood 
and  womanhood. 

Different  schools  have  their  distinctive  and  char- 
acteristic modes  of  government.  As  illustrations 
of  these  various  modes  we  may  cite  a  few  in- 
stances, which  are  not,  however,  to  be  taken  as 
singular.  One  large  grammar  school  of  girls  is  so 
permeated  by  the  paternal  influence  of  the  master 
that  it  is  like  a  well-regulated  home ;  kindness  and 
mutual  consideration  pervade  its  classes  ;  the 
teachers  are  like  mothers  and  sisters,  whom  the 
pupils  tenderly  love  and  respect,  rarely  disappoint, 
and  seldom  disobey.  In  the*  primary  school,  the 
head  teacher  has  long  been  familiar  with  the  homes 
of  the  district,  and  visits  them,  as  the  kindergar- 
ten teachers  habitually  visit  theirs ;  she  therefore 
understands  the  needs  of  the  incoming  classes,  and 
can  adjust  her  methods  to  them  wisely.  With 
more  than  twelve  hundred  pupils  in  a  district 
where  conflicting  interests  would  be  very  likely  to 
occur,  no  disturbance  or  jealousy  arises,  no  pupils 
are  withdrawn  to  private  schools,  and  no  division 
of  feeling  or  lack  of  confidence  has  ever  interfered 
with  the  general  harmony  and  good-will ;  because 
the  animus  of  government  has  been  so  wisely  lib- 


236     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

eral,  and  the  administration  so  justly  considerate 
of  all  the  duties  of  every  pupil,  where  every  pupil 
is  known  in  her  going-out  and  her  coming-in,  and 
in  all  the  obligations  of  her  environment.  In 
accordance  with  the  general  motive  of  this  long 
beneficent  policy,  the  home-building  arts,  sewing 
and  cookery,  were  here  early  introduced,  both  as 
a  means  and  as  an  end,  as  an  educational  and  a 
utilitarian  measure.  The  atmosphere  of  a  true 
home  transfigures  the  school ;  the  ambition  to  add 
to  the  safety  and  happiness  of  home  is  held  up  as 
the  highest  motive,  which  works  itself  out  in 
blessing  to  the  community  from  one  generation  to 
another. 

In  another  school  there  is  built  up  an  inspira- 
tional method  of  discipline,  which,  beginning  with 
social  and  intellectual,  rather  than  moral  incentive, 
reaches  all  the  ends  of  government  with  equal 
carrying  power,  because  all  the  activities  of  the 
child  are  healthfully  aroused  and  related.  A  ses- 
sion spent  in  its  bright  and  airy  rooms  is  an 
exhilaration  to  mind  and  heart.  Boys  and  girls 
sit  companionably  in  the  same  room,  exchange 
courtesies,  and  are  not  hindered  from  any  natural 
action  that  dtfes  not  disturb  others.  The  pupils  in 
recitation  express  themselves  eagerly,  without 
fear  of  harsh  reproof,  and  emulate  each  other  in 
every  exercise  of  mind  and  body  ;  there  is  hardly 
a  sign  of  repression,  and  yet  the  essence  of  order 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS 


pervades  the  whole  body.  The  organization  is  com- 
plete, the  communication  of  motive  magnetic, 
and  the  whole  school  constantly  alive  and  growing 
in  every  member  ;  enthusiasm  quickens  the  pulse 
of  the  teacher,  and  lights  up  the  faces  of  the 
children  ;  the  joyous  play  of  imagination  and  pro- 
ductive activity  of  thought  are  apparent  every- 
where. The  children  cluster  about  the  teacher  in 
little  groups  at  their  reading  or  number  lesson, 
and  in  their  bodily  movements  express  their  alert 
posture  of  mind,  their  loving  spontaneity  of  feel- 
ing, and  the  freedom  of  their  natural  impulse  to 
know;  "busy  work"  of  various  sorts  gives  pleasur- 
able excitement.  Games  and  occupations  akin  to 
the  kindergarten  have  stolen  a  march  on  the 
primary  methods,  and  everywhere  the  thoroughly 
natural  development  of  childhood  and  youth  is 
toning  up  the  morale  of  the  school  beyond  the 
need  of  directly  imposed  discipline.  The  unity  of 
the  school  in  its  aggregated  presentation  is  per- 
fect ;  the  files  from  every  room  march  through 
the  corridors  with  the  precision  of  well-drilled 
platoons  ;  military  order  is  secured  not  by  military 
authority,  but  by  a  genius  for  thorough  organiza- 
tion and  a  corps  d'  esprit  involving  the  willing  and 
hearty  co-operation  of  every  member  of  the  school. 
This  great  feeder  of  our  high  schools  is  growing 
so  healthfully  in  all  the  old  lines  of  work,  and 
leading  out  so  effectively  in  the  new  ones,  that 


238     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

disaffection  and  germs  of  mischief  are  outgrown 
by  the  very  law  of  healthful  activity  :  the  rest- 
less propensity  for  doing  something  is  constantly 
satisfied  ;  constructive  methods  are  building  up 
body,  mind,  and  soul  harmoniously,  and  destruc- 
tive methods  are  left  behind  even  the  remem- 
brance of  a  necessity. 

A  similar  mode  of  government  operates  under 
a  somewhat  different  motive  of  inspiration  in  a 
school  which  has  been  led  to  take  hold  of  observa- 
tion and  demonstration  lessons  in  all  practicable 
directions  of  natural  science,  under  the  leadership 
of  an  enlightened  student  of  nature.  Every  de- 
partment of  school-work  is  vivified  by  the  enthusi- 
asm aroused  in  the  study  of  minerals,  plants,  and 
animals.  The  results  of  this  delightful  experi- 
ment illuminate  the  studies  of  geography,  lan- 
guage, number,  and  all  branches  of  the  old  course, 
to  give  them  new  zest  and  greater  thoroughness, 
and  to  wake  up  the  interest  of  the  cljild  so  health- 
fully as  to  communicate  its  momentum  to  the 
moral  nature.  The  child  thus  becomes  origina- 
tive and  enterprising :  he  is  surrounded  in  his 
class-room  by  the  forms  of  life  and  beauty  which 
he  has  gathered  for  himself  ;  he  utilizes  his  spare 
time  in  arranging  and  providing  for  his  treasures  ; 
he  acquires  scientific  habits  of  thought  and  skilful 
methods  of  work ;  his  hands  and  his  eyes,  his 
mind  and  his  affections,  are  well  employed  ;  his 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS      239 

teacher  is  his  friend  and  companion  in  and  out  of 
school  hours  ;  he  grows  apt  and  zealous  to  learn, 
to  express,  to  embody,  and  to  communicate  his 
fresh  fancies  and  newly  acquired  facts ;  he  be- 
comes self-helpful  and  helpful  to  others,  and  so 
gets  beyond  the  atmosphere  of  wrong  thinking, 
feeling,  and  doing,  and  is  moulded  into  right 
habits  unconsciously  by  all  this  fine  contact  and 
conduct.  The  creative  spirit  evolved  by  this 
training  leads  the  teachers  also  to  find  out  new 
ways  of  presenting  the  ordinary  branches  of  study, 
to  unfold  new  patterns  of  method  and  forms  of 
demonstration,  and  to  become  the  most  productive 
of  educators. 

These  modes  of  government  may  have  been 
approximately  reached  in  many  of  our  schools  : 
they  are  intangible,  and  hardly  to  be  expressed  by 
conventional  statements,  yet  they  are  productive 
of  the  highest  results  ;  they  are  radically  opposed 
to  the  habit  of  governing  by  petty  remonstrance 
or  constant  prodding  and  attacking  the  details  of 
conduct ;  they  are  rather  conformed  to  the  laws  of 
a  true  pyschology,  which  show  us  that  the  con- 
scious will  comes  into  play  only  in  those  channels 
of  vibration  which  the  unconscious  will  has  opened, 
and  that  to  start  into  activity  some  absorbing  in- 
terest or  dominant  purpose  will  soon  clear  the  way 
for  the  unconscious  will,  so  that  its  operation  will 
outstrip  compulsion  or  even  resolve,  and  bring  into 


240     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

obedience   every  faculty  to   recognize  effectually 
the  most  complex  structure. 

In  the  ungraded  classes  the  problem  of  school 
goverment  is  a  still  more  difficult  one.  Some  of 
these  classes  are  made  up  of  children  of  many 
nationalities :  a  fusing  and  unifying  motive  is  at 
once  essential ;  we  must  Americanize  them.  As 
soon  as  they  become  members  of  our  schools,  we 
must  remind  ourselves  and  them  that  they  are 
already  and  only  Americans  ;  we  must  teach  them 
to  love  the  flag,  to  feel  that  they  are  bound  to- 
gether by  the  strong  tie  of  patriotism.  We  intro- 
duce them  as  early  as  possible  to  the  study  of  our 
history  and  our  institutions;  to  this  end  we  bring 
into  all  our  schools  some  study  of  civil  govern- 
ment, and  of  our  American  principles  of  free 
government,  that  we  may  turn  out  from  the  least 
promising  of  our  schools  loyal  citizens,  imbued 
with  a  sense  of  their  civic  obligations  and  political 
, responsibilities.  In  the  ungraded  classes  truancies 
are  perhaps  more  likely  to  occur  than  elsewhere. 
Some  teachers  have  been  so  illogical  in  their 
methods  as  to  visit  the  returning  truant  with 
exasperating  punishment,  thus  increasing  the  diffi- 
culty of  reclaiming  him.  It  has  been  found  over 
and  over  again  that  a  word  of  welcome,  or  an  act 
of  kindness,  may  do  more  to  cure  truancy  than  the 
last  resource  of  penal  authority.  To  give  the 
ragged  boy  clean  and  whole  clothing,  to  aid  him  in 


REPORT  OF  BOARD    OF  SUPERVISORS      24! 

any  way  to  present  a  respectable  appearance,  to 
give  him  a  germ  of  self-respect,  and  to  put  confi- 
dence in  him  as  a  helper,  will  do  more  toward 
making  him  a  faithful  and  manly  pupil  than  any 
expression  of  scorn  or  rebuke,  or  any  attitude  of 
shame  and  disgrace. 

Experiments  were  undertaken  in  many  classes, 
during  the  last  year,  of  introducing  some  simple 
tools  and  manual  training  as  an  indirect  means 
of  moral  training.  Scissors  and  knives  were  fur- 
nished from  private  sources,  to  be  used  at  the 
teacher's  discretion,  under  the  guidance  of  the 
Supervisor,  and  with  the  consent  and  sympathy 
of  the  master  of  the  school.  A  new  avenue  of 
interest  was  opened  to  the  most  unresponsive 
and  irresponsible  pupils,  which  proved  to  be  a 
way  to  an  awakened  interest  in  their  regular 
work  and  right  relations  with  the  school.  Per- 
haps the  following  direct  reports  from  some  of 
the  teachers  will  best  serve  to  justify  the  experi- 
ment :  — 

REPORT  OF  THE  TEACHER  OF  AN  UNGRADED 
CLASS  OF  BOYS. 

"  Last  year  our  Supervisor  gave  us  a  dozen  each 
of  knives  and  scissors,  as  a  sort  of  beginning  in 
manual  training,  and  as  an  incentive  to  good  con- 
duct and  good  lessons.  The  class  was  a  difficult 


242     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

one,  composed  chiefly  of  backward  and  peculiar 
pupils  between  eight  and  fifteen  years  of  age,  in 
a  district  where  a  large  proportion  of  the  charity 
of  the  city  is  expended.  The  boys  looked  for- 
ward with  great  pleasure  to  the  privilege  of  using 
the  tools  two  or  three  times  a  week  after  good 
conduct  and  diligent  effort.  Many  times  they 
would  voluntarily  remain  after  school  to  finish  the 
articles  begun. 

"  Among  other  things  they  made  small  easels 
and  frames,  toy  tables  and  chairs,  toy  sleds,  and 
boats  with  oars.  One  German  boy  developed  great 
ingenuity  and  aptitude  in  working  up  his  fancies 
into  forms  cut  out  of  paper,  cardboard,  and  wood, 
representing  scenery,  and  forms  of  animal  and 
vegetable  life,  as  well  as  mechanical  contrivances, 
such  as  windmills,  etc.  Sometimes  maps  were 
drawn  on  thick  paper  and  cut  out,  or  other  forms 
were  drawn  on  wood  and  cut  out  with  the  knife. 
The  boys  brought  an  abundance  of  soft  wood  and 
cigar  boxes  for  material,  as  well  as  paper  and 
cardboard. 

"  The  beneficial  effect  of  this  work  on  the 
pupils  was  surprising :  whereas  before  there  had 
been  cases  of  truancy  which  were  considered  in- 
corrigible, and  corporal  punishments  were  of  daily 
necessity,  after  the  introduction  of  this  work  not 
a  case  of  truancy  occurred,  nor  was  corporal  pun- 
ishment once  necessary." 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS      243 


REPORT    OF    A    PROMINENT    PRIMARY-SCHOOL 
TEACHER 

"  A  generous  gift  of  scissors  for  our  children  to 
use  has  been  of  great  assistance  the  latter  part  of 
the  year :  it  furnished  us  with  a  much-needed 
opportunity  to  illustrate  the  observation  lessons 
in  form  and  color.  The  children  tire  of  match- 
ing a  scrap  of  colored  material  to  colors  on  a  chart. 
If,  in  addition,  simple  forms  of  colored  paper  are 
given  them  to  fold,  cut,  and  paste,  harmony  of 
color,  design,  accuracy,  neatness,  industry,  and 
attention  soon  follow.  Tools  indulge  the  young 
child  in  his  first  and  most  natural  occupation,  — 
use  of  his  hands.  While  this  instinctive  desire  is 
complied  with,  all  his  energies  are  concentrated 
upon  it,  so  as  to  correct  idle  and  mischievous  ten- 
dencies, and  he  is  instructed  while  fancying  he  is 
only  playing. 

"Some  of  these  features  of  work  formed  an  ex- 
cellent basis  for  what  we  called  '  Friday  afternoon 
fun.'  The  children  brought  their  mothers  to  see 
the  pretty  things  made  in  this  way  ;  and  our  rooms, 
once  a  week,  were  full  of  eager  and  sympathetic 
friends  of  the  children.  No  extra  time  was  taken 
for  the  work  of  paper  folding  and  cutting  ;  but  it 
proved  a  great  source  of  delight  to  the  children, 
by  allowing  them  to  make  objects  illustrating  their 
observation  lessons.  Form  lessons  in  drawing 


244     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

were  also  supplemented  in  the  moulding  of  clay 
solids,  and  in  paper  cut  and  joined  so  as  to  repre- 
sent solids.  We  need  more  variety  of  material  to 
prosecute  this  work;  but  under  proper  conditions, 
with  wise  direction,  I  feel  sure  great  benefits 
will  result  from  training  little  children  to  work 
with  their  hands." 

REPORT    FROM    A    THIRD-CLASS    PRIMARY    TEACHER. 

"  Near  the  close  of  last  year  I  was  supplied 
with  a  small  amount  of  material,  and  thirty  pairs 
of  small  scissors  for  paper-cutting,  etc.  I  con- 
gratulated myself  that  with  the  aid  of  clay,  peas, 
colored  paper,  colored  worsted,  and  scissors,  my 
children  knew,  by  actual  experiment,  spheres, 
cubes,  cylinders,  straight  and  curved  lines,  and 
angles. 

"And  not  this  alone  ;  their  artistic  sensibilities 
were  awakened  by  the  arrangement  (directed  and 
original)  of  the  bits  of  paper  cut  by  themselves  in- 
to desired  forms,  into  the  first  elements  of  design. 

"  I  used  no  more  time  in  this  work  than  is 
granted  for  this  department  in  the  regular  '  Course 
of  Study.' 

"  The  time  was  spent  profitably  and  pleasantly 
by  both  teacher  and  pupils. 

"No  time  was  lost  in  correcting  this  or  that 
child.  The  little  ones  were  happily  employed, 
and  there  was  no  chance  or  desire  for  mischief. 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS      24$ 

"  The  threat  of  depriving  a  child  of  its  clay  or 
paper-cutting  was  sufficient  to  bring  the  most 
wayward  to  terms. 

"  I  think  all  primary  teachers,  particularly  third- 
class  teachers,  will  unite  with  me  in  sincerely 
wishing  that  the  happy  time  would  speedily  arrive 
when  material  necessary  to  carry  on  this  branch 
of  our  work  in  a  logical,  thorough  manner  will  be 
supplied." 

Much  testimony  has  come  to  hand  in  cases 
of  children  of  deficient  intellectual  development, 
whom  the  simple  forms  of  manual  training  have 
been  potent  to  arouse  and  stimulate. 

A  boy  of  fourteen,  unable  to  learn  to  read,  was 
given  a  chance  in  one  of  the  cookery  classes.  He 
took  a  lively  interest  in  the  matter,  and  not  only 
became  proficient  in  housework  and  cookery,  but 
his  awakened  mind  for  the  first  time  grasped  the 
intellectual  work  of  the  school,  and  he  made  un- 
looked-for progress  in  his  studies.  Another  very 
dull  boy,  much  too  old  for  the  class  he  was  in, 
became  interested  in  paper-cutting,  and  applied 
his  newly  found  energy  to  the  regular  school-work, 
so  that  he  was  able  to  take  a  step  forward.  Girls 
have  been  rescued  from  complete  passiveness  by 
the  exercise  of  sewing,  and  the  stimulus  of  accom- 
plishing something  useful. 

But   it  is  in  the  .newer   departures   of   school- 


246     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

work  that  most  of  this  responsibility  of  interpret- 
ing courses  of  study,  and  indicating  methods  and 
standards,  has  been  called  for.  The  department 
of  observation  lessons  and  elementary  science 
especially  awaited  this  effort  when  the  present 
Supervisor  took  charge  of  it.  A  very  general 
demand  was  made  by  the  teachers  for  indication 
of  standards  and  elaboration  of  method.  It  be- 
came necessary  for  the  Supervisor  'first  to  under- 
stand the  wants  of  the  school,  by  ascertaining 
what  had  been  done,  and  to  what  extent  the 
teachers  were  ignorant  of  its  purpose  and  signifi- 
cance as  an  educational  scheme,  and  of  the 
proper  mode  of  presenting  it.  It  was  found  that 
very  few  understood  it  to  be  a  rational  mode  of 
developing  the  child's  powers  according  to  psy- 
chological laws,  and  thus  many  lost  sight  of  its 
purpose  altogether.  It  soon  became  evident  that 
its  use  in  many  schools  was  altogether  mechani- 
cal, defeating  its  whole  aim  ;  and  that  in  many 
schools  it  was  wholly  ignored  as  a  part  of  the 
course.  Only  in  two  or  three  schools  had  it  been 
successfully  and  adequately  undertaken.  A  very 
general  complaint  was  made  that  no  material 
could  be  obtained  for  its  practice,  and  the  whole 
work  had  a  very  discouraging  aspect. 

The  Supervisors'  Report  of  last  year  included 
a  statement  of  the  gradually  improved  condition 
of  this  department  during  the  two  years  then 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS       247 

closed  ;  and  now  we  are  able  to  speak  with  still 
greater  assurance  of  its  growing  firmness  of  tenure 
in  the  schools.  The  teachers  are  beginning  to 
understand  a  kind  of  education  which  rests  upon 
self-activity,  and  leads  the  child  to  the  acquisition 
of  knowledge  by  training  the  senses  to  complete 
observation.  The  next  step  in  the  interpretation 
of  this  course  should  be  the  apprehension  of  the 
educational  value  of  expression,  by  which  we  mean 
not  only  formulating  the  results  of  observation  in 
spoken  or  written  language,  but  through  any  form 
of  tangible  demonstration.  To  this  end  the  Su- 
pervisor of  elementary  science  has  prepared  a 
manual  for  the  instruction  and  assistance  of  the 
primary  teachers,  which  has  been  adopted  by  the 
school  committee,  and  ordered  to  be  placed  in 
the  hands  of  the  primary  teachers  and  graduating 
classes  of  the  normal  school.  The  whole  philoso- 
phy of  this  method  of  education  is  closely  allied 
to  that  of  the  kindergarten,  and  makes,  therefore, 
a  vital  connection  between  those  schools  now  at 
the  foundation  of  our  public  school  system  and 
the  primary  schools  which  they  feed. 

It  may  be  easily  shown  that  the  natural  devel- 
opment of  the  child  is  by  the  exercise  of  all  its 
activities, — not  its  mental  activities  alone,  but  its 
physical,  mental,  and  moral  activities,  progressing 
simultaneously  and  harmoniously.  The  feelings, 
the  will,  the  intelligence,  and  the  physical  powers 


248     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE   NEW  EDUCATION 

act  in  concert  in  every  natural  effort  of  the  child 
to  acquire  knowledge.  The  senses  perceive,  the 
feelings  arouse,  the  will  directs,  and  the  hands  work 
out  and  re-create  the  facts  of  knowledge  in  what- 
ever material  is  supplied :  no  knowledge  is  com- 
plete which  is  not  demonstrated  by  some  produc- 
tive activity.  The  study  of  form,  size,  color,  plant 
and  animal  life,  and  physical  phenomena  of  nature, 
which  connects  the  child  with  the  world  about 
him,  should  be  carried  on  not  by  passive  observa- 
tion alone,  but  by  the  use  of  every  sense,  by  the 
exercise  of»the  imitative  faculty  so  early  developed 
in  children,  and  by  the  exercise  of  the  creative 
faculty,  which  involves  manual  training.  This 
opens  the  whole  subject  of  manual  training  in  the 
elementary  schools,  which  is  waiting  for  an  en- 
trance into  our  curriculum.  The  time  is  now  ripe 
for  the  interrelation  of  all  these  departments, — 
observation  lessons,  elementary  science,  and  such 
forms  of  manual  training  as  carry  up  the  kinder- 
garten methods  into  our  primary  grades.  The 
harmonious  connection  of  all  grades  of  work  and 
all  branches  of  study  is  an  end  greatly  to  be 
desired  in  our  schools,  and  very  much  at  heart  as 
an  aim  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors.  Every  modi- 
fication which  can  be  made  to  break  down  the 
rigid  partitions  which  threaten  to  distract  the 
teachers  with  so  many  detached  lines  of  work, 
instead  of  one  inclusive  and  interrelated  plan,  is 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS      249 

in  the  direction  of  true  pedagogical  science,  and 
is  constantly  before  this  Board  as  a  goal  in  every 
department.  Harmony  of  method,  as  well  as  har- 
mony of  spirit,  is  the  only  condition  of  right  devel- 
opment, whether  for  the  school-system  or  for  the 
child.  All  organization  rests  upon  harmoniously 
related  activities,  and  the  child  is  the  type  of  all 
organisms  in  this  respect. 

Sewing  and  cookery,  as  well  as  other  depart- 
ments of  manual  training,  present  themselves  in 
two  aspects  as  parts  of  a  school-course  ;  the  first 
is  an  educational,  the  second  an  industrial  aspect. 
As  a  preparation  for  practical  usefulness  these 
aspects  run  parallel  with  each  other,  and  are  both 
best  subserved  by  laboratory  methods.  Our  schools 
should  prepare  the  boys  and  girls  for  active  help- 
fulness in  all  the  industrial  interests  of  the  age ; 
for  we  must  fit  them,  not  for  some  remote  contin- 
gency, but  for  the  work  of  life  which  they  will  be 
called  to  do  at  once,  and  should  be  led  to  respect 
and  dignify.  Labor  of  the  hands  should  he  hon- 
ored in  our  educational  scheme  ;  mere  money-get- 
ting, as  an  end  of  life,  should  not  be  held  up  as 
the  highest  challenge  to  ambition.  Our  theories 
of  school  instruction  should  lead  out  not  only  in 
the  direction  of  purely  intellectual  success,  but  to 
a  high  standard  of  usefulness  at  home  and  in  the 
community,  and  to  the  generation  and  interchange, 
not  only  of  ideas,  but  of  helpful  activities,  and  the 


250     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

exercise  of  individual  energy  of  every  kind  for  the 
good  of  humanity.  We  therefore  undertake  to 
consider  both  aspects  of  these  industrial  depart- 
ments, which  do  not  conflict  but  complement  each 
other.  From  the  educational  point  of  view,  we 
value  them  as  training  for  the  eye  and  hand,  of 
the  development  of  the  sense  of  touch  and  the 
sense  of  measurement,  and  that  training  of  all  the 
senses  which  is  the  motive  of  the  observation  les- 
sons. In  the  preparation  of  garments,  which  has 
characterized  our  sewing  instruction  thus  far,  we 
will  follow  an  educational  principle  which  com- 
bines the  moral  activities  of  interest  and  sympathy 
with  the  physical  and  intellectual  training,  and 
produces  a  concrete  and  tangible  expression  of  all. 
Both  sewing  and  cookery  in  this  light  educate 
the  moral  nature  by  exercising  it  in  a  productive 
act  for  a  useful  object,  or  from  an  unselfish 
motive.  And  why  should  not  some  training  in 
household  duties  be  begun  in  the  primary  schools 
as  it  is  in  the  kindergarten,  —  with  the  needle,  the 
care  exercised  in  handling  all  the  material,  in 
keeping  every  thing  in  order,  in  the  careful 
arrangement  of  the  room,  even  to  the  vase  of 
flowers  on  the  desk,  and  all  the  appointments  of 
the  social  lunch  ?  In  these  ways  the  child  may 
exercise  patience,  neatness,  order,  kindness,  and 
the  sense  for  beauty,  so  that  the  training  of  his 
moral  nature  shall  begin  to  build  up  character. 


REPORT  OF  BOARD   OF  SUPERVISORS       2$  I 

This  end  should  never  be  lost  sight  of,  for  even  in 
its  utilitarian  aspect,  integrity  of  character  — 
strictly  the  wholeness  or  sum  of  all  right  develop- 
ment—  is  the  most  valuable  contribution  which 
the  individual  can  make  to  the  Commonwealth. 

And  it  should  be  admitted  that  one  important 
function  of  our  school-system  is  to  elevate  the 
home-life,  which  is  the  fundamental  unit  of  our 
national  life ;  also  to  prepare  our  children  for 
their  practical  duties  to  the  community  as  well  as 
to  the  home.  We  educate  them  in  all  that  fits 
them  for  business,  why  not  for  the  natural  indus- 
tries? We  train  them  for  useful  citizenship,  why 
not  for  useful  home-building  ?  Yet  we  cannot  fail  to 
remember  that  these  specific  directions  of  educa- 
tional development  are  all  to  be  comprehended  in 
one  great,  unifying  purpose ;  viz.,  to  train  the 
child  for  a  well-rounded  and  progressive  manhood 
or  womanhood,  and  for  character  as  the  con- 
summate flower  of  culture. 

But  we  already  prophesy  that  the  so-called 
"manual  training"  is  to  be  the  connecting  link 
between  all  our  grades  and  departments  of  school- 
work.  Self-activity  in  observation,  thought,  and 
expression,  involving  the  functions  of  body,  mind, 
and  soul,  is  the  key-note  of  this  new  harmony,  and 
we  shall  endeavor  so  to  mingle  it  in  every  chord 
we  strike  — 

"  That  mind  and  soul  according  well 
May  make  one  music." 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE 


WE  find  the  child  continually  applying  his  senses 
to  the  investigation  of  things  about  him.  This  is 
his  best  means  of  knowledge,  and,  more  important 
still,  his  best  means  of  growth.  As  he  uses  his 
senses  they  become  more  accurate,  more  search- 
ing, more  active;  they  tell  him  of  the  external 
world,  and  put  him  in  communion  with  nature. 
He  observes  the  rising  and  the  setting  sun,  the 
clouds,  the  rainbow,  the  rain,  snow,  and  hail ;  the 
starry  heavens  with  the  moon  and  planets,  perhaps 
the  aurora  lighting  and  adorning  the  shadowy 
night ;  and  he  wonders  and  questions.  He  watches 
more  closely,  learns  many  details  of  these  phenom- 
ena, and  drinks  in  the  order  and  beauty  of  their 
appearance.  He  can  but  inquire  of  their  origin 
and  movements,  and  his  imagination,  his  awe,  and 
his  love  to  the  Creator  are  awakened.  His  soul 
grows  with  the  stirring  of  his  thought,  and  he  be- 
comes one  with  nature  in  his  consciousness  of 
creative  and  divine  love. 

Or  let  the  child  walk  amid  the  trees,  play  upon 
the  grassy  bank,  run  before  the  breaking  wave, 

252 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE  253 

or  wander  along  the  shell-strewn  beach.  He  sees 
all  things  beautiful  with  growing  life ;  the  birds 
and  insects  flying,  hovering,  and  twittering,  the 
flowers  shedding  their  perfume  and  spreading 
their  lovely  corollas,  the  leaves  and  stems  expand- 
ing, the  lambs  and  kine  in  peaceful  or  merry  bliss, 
the  great  hills  lifting  their  verdured  summits  to  the 
sky,  and  the  rills  and  rivers  hastening  to  the  sea. 
What  variety  of  form,  of  color,  of  motion,  of  uses 
and  relations,  he  learns  to  recognize,  if  only  allowed 
to  wander  and  to  dream  !  They  all  become  his 
companions,  and  help  him  also  to  grow  and  unfold, 
and  lift  himself  toward  the  light  in  free  activity. 
He  is  a  poet  and  a  seer. 

But  if  we  feel  it  necessary  to  direct  all  this 
activity  so  as  to  secure  more  definite  results  of 
growth  and  knowledge,  let  us  give  the  child  a 
garden,  and  tools  with  which  to  work  in  it.  He 
may  dig,  hoe,  and  rake  ;  he  observes  and  handles 
the  soil,  studies  the  loam,  the  sand,  the  gravel, 
pebbles  and  rocks.  He  collects  and  arranges 
these  things  ;  he  compares  one  with  another ;  he 
sees  how  they  are  produced,  and  how  they  are 
related  to  each  other.  He  examines  the  seed,  and 
inquires  about  its  conditions,  its  changes,  and  its 
purposes.  He  learns  how  plants  grow,  and  how 
they  behave ;  he  knows  them  not  only  by  sight, 
but  he  takes  them  by  the  hand  and  makes  their 
personal  acquaintance ;  he  works  for  them  and 


254      THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

with  them  ;  he  partakes  of  the  life  of  nature  ;  the 
contact  and  the  work  are  healthful  and  strength- 
ening, and -he  grows  stronger  with  every  touch  of 
mother  earth. 

But  if  the  child  is  not  within  reach  of  this  free- 
dom of  companionship  and  spontaneous  study  of 
outward  nature,  if  we  can  secure  observation  only 
within  the  school-room,  then  bring  in  the  seed,  let 
him  plant  it,  watch  its  germination  and  growth  ; 
let  him  draw  it,  describe  its  various  stages,  express 
its  color,  and  learn  its  processes  of  development  by 
close  observation.  As  the  root  and  stem  develop, 
let  him  watch  every  change,  and  investigate  every 
process  with  some  plants  which  he  may  uproot  for 
this  purpose.  Let  him  study,  as  the  season  ad- 
vances, the  leaf-forms  and  the  structure  of  every 
part;  let  him  draw  and  color  from  the  plant  itself; 
let  him  use  it  in  design  for  artistic  development. 
Let  the  child  observe  the  relation  of  one  plant  to 
another,  the  relation  of  the  plant  to  its  environ- 
ment, and  observe  how  it  is  adapted  to  the 
resources  and  requirements  of  its  conditions. 
There  are  wonderful  mechanical  contrivances  to 
assist  fertilization  and  distribution,  to  water  and 
nourish  the  root  most  effectually,  to  prepare  for 
the  growth  and  fruitage  and  the  preservation  of 
type,  which  he  will  be  delighted  to  perceive.  Even 
an  unimaginative  child  will  be  glad  to  watch  these 
features  and  provisions  of  growth,  and  his  mind 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE  255 

will  be  continually  exercised  therewith.  Let  him 
try  to  construct  such  machinery,  and  copy  such 
designs,  and  manual  training  will  do  its  legitimate 
work  of  supplementing  the  powers  of  observation. 

Give  the  child  all  the  freedom  of  interest  and 
selection  possible.  In  all  the  variety  of  subject 
and  multiplicity  of  detail  for  observation  of  plant 
and  animal  life,  consult  his  taste  and  facility,  and 
keep  to  one  or  two  simple  lines  of  study  or  analy- 
sis. Not  too  much  analysis  at  first,  and  no  drud- 
gery, should  accompany  the  observation  of  nature 
in  the  school-room,  because  a  sense  of  sympathy 
with  nature  is  the  highest  end  of  such  study  ;  the 
growth  of  the  soul  is  the  final  object  of  all  study, 
and  the  soul  grows  by  exercise  of  its  powers  of 
love  and  aspiration. 

A  class  in  the  kindergarten  planted  the  bean 
and  the  pea  in  the  sand-garden,  after  they  had  been 
swollen  in  water ;  then  each  dug  up  the  ger- 
minated seed,  planted  and  observed  the  start- 
ing of  the  root  and  plumule.  Each  child  had  his 
own  specimens,  which  he  alone  had  cared  for,  and 
each  sat  down  to  the  study  of  the  sprouted  seed. 
On  a  bit  of  paper  each  drew  the  bean  and  pea  in 
three  stages  ;  viz.,  hard,  swollen,  and  sprouted : 
each  took  off  the  skin  of  the  swollen  one  as  un- 
broken as  possible,  and  examined  its  veining,  then 
drew  it  ;  at  a  later  stage  of  growth  other  specimens 
were  produced  and  studied  in  the  same  way,  and  at 


256     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

last  the  little  plant  with  green  leaves  was  drawn 
and  colored.  The  drawings  were  free  and  un- 
cramped  by  rules  or  the  timidity  engendered  by 
criticism.  This  was  a  beautiful  method  of  study. 

There  are  many  ways  of  assisting  or  stimulating 
the  interest  of  the  child,  and  one  sure  way  of  hinder- 
ing it  ;  too  much  system  will  kill  it,  too  many  facts 
given  will  paralyze  it.  Do  not  be  too  anxious  to 
bring  the  child's  discovery  into  line  with  that  pre- 
conceived plan  you  call  science,  and  do  not  aim  at 
uniformity  of  result.  Free,  loving  desire  and  sym- 
pathy with  nature  is  the  best  result,  in  whatever 
way  it  arrives.  Cultivate  the  powers  of  observa- 
tion through  the  medium  of  a  spontaneous  interest. 

The  philosophy  and  method  of  this  observational 
study  of  nature  are  given  in  the  "  Manual  of  Obser- 
vation Lessons  "  as  follows  :  — 

Above  all,  the  work  should  be  free,  and  rilled  with  life  and  feel- 
ing. It  would  be  of  the  greatest  value  to  put  life  and  living 
forms  and  processes  before  the  children  in  all  these  departments, 
in  order  to  inspire  a  vital  and  lively  interest,  original  investiga- 
tion, and  creative  production,  always  relating  all  parts  of  the  work 
to  each  other,  and  to  the  grand  inclusive  thought  of  nature  in  the 
works  of  nature,  which  illustrate  every  idea  that  the  teacher  is 
striving  to  communicate  to  the  child. 

The  observation  lessons  for  primary  schools  are  for  the  training 
of  the  senses,  in  order  to  gain  fundamental  facts  of  knowledge 
through  self-activity,  to  establish  the  child's  relations  with  the 
world  of  matter,  and  to  awaken  his  mind  and  soul.  Through 
complete  observation  we  lay  the  foundation  of  knowledge,  which, 
by  the  assimilative  power  of  the  mind,  is  converted  into  active 
energy  of  thought,  demanding  expression  in  outward  forms. 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE 


Observation  should  therefore  be  connected  invariably  with 
expression. 

Expression  is  the  natural  complement  of  observation  and 
thought. 

No  thought  is  complete  which  is  not  expressed. 

Every  child  has  an  impulse  for  expression,  which  should  be  fos- 
tered by  the  teacher.  Expression  consists  in  the  embodiment  of 
thought  or  feeling  through  some  material  form  or  external  activity. 

Expression  may  be  by  the  movement  of  the  face,  the  eyes,  or 
the  body;  by  words,  both  oral  and  written;  by  industrial  or  artis- 
tic work  in  any  material  ;  by  music,  and  by  dramatic  action. 

Every  child  should  be  introduced  to  all  forms  of  expression 
until  his  natural  aptitude  is  discovered.  Manual  training  gives  fa- 
cility and  skill  in  dealing  with  every  variety  of  material  for  expres- 
sion, and  is,  therefore,  a  necessary  preparation  for  all  effort  toward 
expression. 

The  observation  and  expression  lessons  of  a  class  should  be  so 
conducted  as  to  involve  the  body,  the  mind,  and  the  soul,  of  every 
child.  Nature  exercises  these  several  functions  in  every  act  of  the 
child's  development. 

The  physical  activity  of  observation  is  in  the  use  of  the  senses 
and  muscles  in  acquiring  information  ;  the  mental  activity  of  ob- 
servation is  in  the  perception  and  intelligence  awakened  ;  the  soul 
activity  is  in  the  love,  reverence,  or  joy  which  may  be  excited  by 
observation  of  natural  forms  and  phenomena,  and  communion  with 
nature. 

The  physical  activity  of  expression  is  in  the  manipulation  or 
bodily  action  exercised  in  production  ;  the  mental  activity  is  in  the 
completion  of  the  ideas  resulting  from  observation,  and  in  the 
exercise  of  the  creative  power  of  the  mind;  the  soul  activity  is  in 
the  accompanying  emotion  of  love,  sympathy,  or  reverence,  or 
in  the  conception  of  the  ideal  involved  in  expression. 

Any  work  of  observation  or  expression  for  the  child  which 
omits  any  one  of  these  functions  is  partial  and  imperfect,  and  so 
far  a  failure  in  educative  power  or  completeness. 

The  unity  of  the  threefold  nature  of  the  child  should  be  pre- 
served in  every  process  of  education. 

The  observation  lessons  provide  an  opportunity  to  learn  what 


2$8     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

the  senses  may  tell,  so  that  the  mind  may  gain  ideas ;  the  expres- 
sion lessons  provide  an  opportunity  to  put  these  ideas  into  some 
form  which  shall  communicate  them  to  others :  they  should  aim 
to  make  the  child  industrious,  originative,  and  benevolent;  they 
should  contain  as  much  of  his  individuality  as  possible,  and  busy 
him  in  productive  work,  either  to  express  his  ideals  or  his  love  for 
others,  or  to  be  helpful  to  others, — thus  establishing  his  human 
and  divine  relationships. 

In  this  way,  the  child  makes  his  connection  with  nature,  with 
man,  and  with  God,  and  develops  symmetrically  every  part  of  his 
being. 

Training  in  observation,  or  training  of  the  senses,  increases  the 
power  to  learn  and  the  power  to  think  ;  training  in  expression,  or 
manual  training,  increases  the  power  to  think  also,  completing  and 
defining  the  thought  by  giving  it  outward  form,  and  impressing 
that  outward  form  with  its  own  originative  impulse.  Expression 
should  always  be  associated  with  a  moral  impulse,  that  the  exer- 
cise of  the  moral  nature  may  produce  moral  strength.  Thus  the 
physical,  mental,  and  moral  nature  of  the  child  are  all  involved  in 
the  observation  and  expression  lessons. 

The  observation  lessons  are  in  furtherance  of  the  natural  ac- 
tivity of  the  senses  which  are  the  child's  earliest  and  best  means 
of  knowledge,  and  connect  him  with  the  external  world. 

The  expression  lessons  are  in  furtherance  of  the  natural  activ- 
ity of  the  muscles  in  completing  thought,  and  connecting  the  child 
with  the  world  of  matter  and  the  world  of  mankind  as  a  produc- 
tive moral  agent. 

The  observation  work  is  an  extension  of  the  sensory  nervous 
system,  and  conveys  knowledge  and  ideas  to  the  brain ;  the  ex- 
pression work  is  an  extension  of  the  motor  nervous  system,  and 
connects  the  creative  thought  with  matter  again  :  the  one  receives 
what  the  material  universe  has  to  give;  the  other  gives  back  to 
the  outside  world  what  it  receives,  plus  the  individual  thought  and 
motive  which  impresses  it. 

We  must  aim  to  give  the  child  complete  and  accurate  knowl- 
edge through  the  senses,  and  to  lead  him  to  complete  and  accurate 
expression  through  his  powers  and  means  of  expression. 

Both  observation  and  expression  should  be  as  spontaneous  as 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE  259 

possible,  but  carefully  trained  under  the  direction  of  one  who 
understands  the  laws  of  the  child's  development,  and  who  offers 
to  the  child  an  inspiring  sympathy  as  well  as  a  responsive  inter- 
est and  knowledge  concerning  the  subject  of  study  and  work. 
Observation,  thought,  expression  :  these  include  all  the  means  of 
development  which  can  be  offered  to  the  human  being. 

DIRECTIONS   FOR   LESSONS. 

1.  The  observation  and  elementary  science  lessons  have  for 
their  first  object  the  cultivation  of  the  powers  of  observation. 

2.  The  object  to  be  studied  should  be  in  the  hands  of  every 
child  in  the  class,  either  for  the  whole  or  a  part  of  the  time  of 
lesson. 

3.  The  object  should  be  observed  by  the  child,  not  only  with 
one  sense,  as,  for  example,  sight,  but  by  every  sense  which  may  be 
applied  to  it  with  safety. 

4.  The  child  should  have  an  opportunity  to  see  it  under  pleas- 
urable excitement  of   attention,  and  should  be  directed  by  the 
teacher's  questions  toward  interesting  and  important  points  of 
observation. 

5.  The  object  should  be  observed,  not  alone  as  a  single  thing, 
but  as  related  to  other  things. 

6.  The  quality  to  which  observation  is  directed  should  be  dis- 
tinguished in  a  variety  of    things.     The   faculty  of   comparison 
should  be  developed  from  observation,  by  distinguishing  the  same 
quality  in  two  or  more  objects,  and  noticing  their  likeness  and 
difference. 

7.  The  faculty  of  classification  should  follow  comparison,  by 
teaching  the  child  to  arrange  in  groups  objects  having  common 
qualities. 

8.  The  faculty  of  relating  cause  to  effect  and  effect  to  cause 
should  follow,  involving  the  logic  of  structure  and  function  in  liv- 
ing forms,  and  of  origin,  history,  and  uses,  in  inorganic  material. 

9.  All  the  departments  of  elementary  science  should  be  con- 
stantly related  to  each  other,  in  presentation,  in  observation,  and 
expression,  as  far  as  possible. 

10.  The  lessons  should  not  be  made  tiresome  by  dwelling  too 


26O     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

long  upon  one  isolated  point  of  observation,  or  by  too  much  repe- 
tition. One  fact  gained,  or  one  quality  observed,  will  be  con- 
stantly revived  in  successive  objects  of  observation,  and  in  its 
natural  associations,  so  that  it  is  unnecessary  to  attempt  a  tedious 
drill  in  each  lesson. 

u.  As  far  as  possible,  the  class  should  help  the  teacher  and 
each  other  in  the  conduct  of  the  lesson,  and  be  busy  in  a  sponta- 
neous way  about  it,  under  the  sympathetic  control  of  the  teacher. 

12.  It  is  always  well  to  seize  upon  some  incidental  occurrence 
or  object  of  interest  connected  with  the  children's  work  or  play 
for  the  subject  of  a  lesson,  and,  whenever  practicable  (which  is 
usually  the  case),  allow  the  object  to  be  contributed,  or  at  least 
suggested,  by  the  children  or  by  one  child. 

13.  If  the  object  of  observation  is  a  plant  or  animal,  take  great 
pains  to  have  a  living  specimen,  rather  than  a  dead  one ;  and 
something  familiar  to  the  children,  rather  than  unfamiliar. 

14.  Make  a  few  strong  points  in  each  lesson,  and  lead  the  chil- 
dren to  see  the  relation  between  them,  and  wherein  they  are  char- 
acteristic of  the  individual  or  the  class  which  they  represent. 

15.  In  studying  a  simple  object,  teach  the  child  to  regard  it  in 
its  activity  and  motion,  as  well  as  at  rest ;  showing  what  it  does, 
as  well  as  what  it  is. 

16.  In  studying  the  activities  of  natural  forms,  lead  the  child  to 
discern  the  laws  of  those  activities,  and  the  results  of  resistance 
to  those  laws. 

17.  Point  out  to  the  child's  thought  whatever  symbolism  lies 
hidden  in  any  form  or  process  of  matter,  as  soon  as  he  seems 
capable  of  perceiving  it,  and  encourage  him  to  reach  out  from 
the  material  to  the  spiritual.     Trace  the  continuity  of  law  in  all 
processes,  —  physical,  mental,  and  spiritual. 

18.  Do  not  attempt  observations  which  are  too  nice  and  com- 
plete for  the  child's  comprehension  at  any  stage  of  the  work. 

19.  Do  not,  at  any  time,  present  points  of  observation  which 
are  accidental  or  individual,  so  much  as  those  which  are  inherent 
and  general. 

20.  Begin  the  training  of  expression  in  various  ways  as  soon  as 
clear  observation  is  finished. 

21.  Lead  the  child  into  various  forms  of  expression,  as  they 


ELEMENTARY  SCIENCE  26 1 

prove  attractive  and  practicable,  until  he  takes   pleasure   in   a 
variety  of  expression. 

22.  Language  or  expression  may  be  in  the  form  of  oral  or  writ- 
ten words,  drawing,  moulding,  and  the  beginnings  of  industrial 
occupation   with    every   available   material ;    written    expression 
should  be  more  and  more  required  as  the  child  matures. 

23.  Combine  industrial  or  manual  training,  as  far  as  practicable, 
with  all  elementary  science  work. 

24.  Attention   from   inherent    interest,  and   not  from  outward 
compulsion,  should  accompany  every  lesson. 


FROEBEL'S     EDUCATIONAL     THEO- 
RIES 


ADDRESS    AT    THE   SWAIN  FREE    SCHOOL,    NEW 
BEDFORD,    1882 


THE  doctrines  of  Pestalozzi  entered  radically 
into  the  system  of  Froebel.  In  contrast  to  those 
who  base  education  upon  authority,  they  based  it 
upon  the  natural  activities  of  the  child.  Froebel 
goes  a  step  farther  than  his  teacher  in  developing 
the  child's  personality.  Both  considered  the  child 
in  the  totality  of  his  environment  as  well  as  in  the 
totality  of  his  powers.  Froebel  makes  the  child 
take  the  initiative,  calling  into  action  his  impulses 
and  will  as  educational  factors.  He  not  only  per- 
mits but  arouses  the  child's  originative  as  well  as 
imitative  faculties.  He  leads  the  child  to  make 
use  of  his  material,  as  well  as  to  observe  it  thor- 
oughly, for  the  apprehension  of  its  qualities.  He 
would  train  the  child  to  a  full  perception  of  nature 
as  a  fourrdation  of  formative  work,  in  order  to  his 
widest  culture  and  helpfulness.  The  impulse  for 
active  expression,  the  pleasure  in  inventing,  the 
achievement  of  the  thought  through  the  will,  is 

262 


FROEBEL'S   EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       263 

Froebel's  addition  to  Pestalozzi's  educational  sys- 
tem. He  furnishes  thereby  a  counterpoise  to 
acute  and  searching  perception,  to  the  investiga- 
tion of  facts,  to  the  struggle  after  truth,  which 
gives  rest  and  satisfaction  to  the  mind  and  soul. 
He  converted  the  childish  instinct  for  play,  which 
is  nature's  earliest  training  for  humanity,  into 
conscious  action.  Childhood  should  be  before  all 
things  a  time  of  happiness,  and  can  be  made  so  by 
encouraging  natural  activity,  setting  free  the  spon- 
taneous forces,  and  enabling  the  child  to  learn  and 
act  for  itself,  to  see  with  its  own  eyes,  to  observe 
and  attend  rightly,  to  perceive  and  distinguish 
correctly,  to  compare,  to  contrast,  to  construct, 
and  in  every  healthful  way  to  give  outward  expres- 
sion to  the  inward  self.  Morality  and  virtue  must 
be  learned  through  doing  ;  the  will  must  be 
strengthened  by  decision  and  action ;  self-control 
must  be  acquired  through  experience. 

The  destiny  of  a  human  being  is  to  be  the 
child  of  nature,  the  child  of  man,  and  the  child  of 
God.  The  young  child  is  the  mirror  of  the  human 
race  in  its  native  development  and  utterance. 
The  stages  in  the  life  of  childhood  correspond 
to  the  epochs  of  the  progressive  development 
of  mankind.  The  education  of  children  re- 
quires, therefore,  a  consideration  of  human  na- 
ture in  general,  a  consideration  of  the  age  in  which 
they  are  living,  a  consideration  of  the  personality 


264     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

of  each  individual,  and  a  consideration  of  the  law 
of  human  development.  These  fundamental  ideas 
have  been  more  or  less  approximated  and  expressed 
in  different  ages  :  they  have  been  recognized  by 
every  great  educator  in  the  history  of  the  world ; 
but  in  the  relations  in  which  Froebel  presents 
them,  and  the  applications  he  discovered  for  them, 
they  are  new  and  original. 

Before  any  great  idea  assumes  an  established 
form,  it  must  have  been  thought  out  again  and 
again  by  pioneers  in  its  realm,  each  of  whom  has 
contributed  something  to  it.  Froebel's  ideal  of 
human  education  had  been  groped  after  and  worked 
at  for  centuries  by  minds  kindred  to  his  own. 
Pythagoras  made  harmony  with  the  universe  and 
God  the  great  aim  of  education ;  knowledge  of 
self,  a  search  after  the  nature  and  cause  of  all 
things,  perception  of  the  order  and  beauty  of  the 
universe,  and  knowledge  of  all  phenomena,  with  a 
well-regulated  life,  he  regarded  as  essential  re- 
quirements for  this  education.  Solon  prepared  a 
system  of  education  for  the  people  which  required 
every  father  to  teach  his  own  son  to  read  as  well 
as  to  learn  some  useful  occupation,  to  train  the 
body  in  harmony  and  strength,  and  to  cultivate  the 
mind.  His  method  of  teaching  was  largely  by  play. 
Music  and  drawing  were  the  last  accomplishments. 
Socrates  was  a  practical  educator,  and  gave  his 
name  to  his  method.  He  selected  his  pupils  who 


FROEBEL^S    EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       26$ 

accompanied  him  as  disciples  ;  he  had  no  school- 
room, and  he  took  no  compensation.  His  method 
of  teaching  was  directed  against  self-conceit  and 
superstition  :  it  appealed  constantly  to  the  indi- 
vidual and  independent  reason,  and  exercised  the 
mind  by  the  friction  of  argument. 

"  The  whole  group 
In  orderly  procession  sallied  forth 
Right  onward  without  struggling,  to  attend 
Their  teacher  in  harmonics. 
Their  harps  were  strung  a  loftier  key." 

Plato  regarded  the  first  three  years  of  life  as 
most  important  in  education.  He  defined  education 
as  nurture.  Children  should  be  carried  into  the 
fields  and  temples  in  infancy ;  the  mothers  should 
rock  them  and  sing  them  to  sleep  ;  nothing  immoral 
should  be  shown  or  read  to  them  ;  they  should  be 
acted  upon  only  by  the  beautiful  and  the  good ; 
study  should  not  be  compulsory,  but  made  pleasant 
and  easy,  as  though  they  were  playing  ;  their  amuse- 
ments and  games  should  be  directed  ;  education 
should  make  a  man  good,  and  form  noble 
character. 

Aristotle  wrote  a  treatise  on  pedagogics.  "  Good 
education,"  he  said,  "  consists  in  habituating  man 
to  rejoice  or  grieve  reasonably,  producing  a  healthy 
and  well-cultivated  soul  in  a  healthy  and  well-cul- 
tivated body."  Children  should  be  guarded  against 
bad  example,  and  their  teachers  be  carefully  se- 


lected.  In  the  first  five  years  of  life  they  shall 
play  and  exercise  themselves  in  ways  which  shall 
illustrate  their  future  occupations.  In  learning 
arithmetic,  the  boys  practised  by  distributing 
apples ;  in  reading,  by  transposing  letters ;  in  geog- 
raphy, by  tablets  on  which  the  countries  were 
marked  ;  in  geometry,  by  drawing  on  the  sand. 
From  concrete  to  abstract  was  the  method. 

Quintilian  said  that  even  for  elementary  instruc- 
tion the  most  skilful  teachers  should  be  provided. 
He  taught  reading  by  teaching  the  names  of  things 
together,  instead  of  by  the  letters.  He  gave  the 
child  that  which  pleased  him  to  play  with,  and 
that  he  could  examine,  handle,  and  name.  He 
would  teach  every  child  according  to  its  natural 
disposition  and  capacity,  and  did  not  allow  whip- 
ping. How  close  was  the  ancient  doctrine  to  that 
of  Froebel  in  many  things  ! 

After  the  mediaeval  darkness  came  Erasmus. 
He  taught  that  before  the  seventh  year  all  learn- 
ing was  to  be  acquired  through  play,  and  the  dis- 
cipline to  be  mild.  His  maxims  were  :  Words 
before  things  ;  the  education  of  girls  as  important 
as  that  of  boys  ;  reverence  inculcated  by  observ- 
ing the  splendor  of  the  heavens,  the  richness  of 
the  earth,  the  boundless  sea,  and  all  the  wonders 
of  nature. 

Bacon  said,  "  Take  the  lock  to  pieces  and  ex- 
amine its  mechanism,  and  then  make  a  key  to  fit 


FRO  REEL'S   EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       267 

it."  "  Clear  the  mind  of  systems  and  theories,  and 
then  interrogate  nature."  He  struck  at  the  root 
of  .the  tree,  and  revolutionized  methods  of  thought. 

Raticke  directed  that  teaching  should  always  be 
from  the  concrete  to  the  abstract.  He  says,  "  In 
all  teaching  follow  the  course  of  nature."  "  Teach 
only  one  thing  at  a  time."  "  Learn  without  com- 
pulsion." "Learn  nothing  by  rote."  "Teach 
everything  by  experiment  and  inquiry." 

Comenius  wrote  several  books  on  education,  and 
is  one  of  the  greatest  lights  in  the  history  of  edu- 
cational science.  The  following  sentences  suggest 
his  philosophy.  Man  can  only  become  man  by 
education.  Schools  are  the  workshops  of  human- 
ity, building  men.  All  subjects  of  study  must  be 
proportioned  to  the  age  and  capacity  of  the  stu- 
dent ;  the  matter  must  precede  the  form,  the  con- 
crete before  the  abstract,  details  before  principles. 
Do  not  force  children  to  study,  but  arouse  their 
enthusiasm  for  learning,  and  make  it  as  easy  and 
natural  as  possible.  Combine  learning  with  play, 
and  avoid  teaching  what  is  useless.,  No  corporal 
punishment.  Children  should  have  pictures  and 
models,  and  see  the  use  of  what  they  learn  ;  they 
should  study,  as  far  as  possible,  from  the  heavens 
and  earth,  rather  than  from  books.  Have  one 
teacher  for  each  class  of  ten. 

Comenius  established  the  mothers'  school  in 
every  home  for  the  training  of  the  senses ;  the 


268     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

national  school  in  every  parish  ;  the  gymnasium  in 
every  large  town,  and  the  university  in  every  coun 
try.     His  system  comprised  the  germs  of  all  gur 
improved  methods. 

Montaigne,  Rabelais,  and  Rousseau  added  their 
distinctive  thoughts  to  the  growing  science  of  edu- 
cajtion.  All  their  free  methods  entered  deeply  into 
the  system  of  Pestalozzi.  Pestalozzi  resolved  to 
raise  the  fallen,  and  "  live  like  a  beggar,  in  order  to 
teach  beggars  how  to  live."  He  said,  "I  will  put 
the  education  of  the  people  into  the  hands  of  the 
mothers."  He  tried  to  reform  the  whole  science 
of  education.  He  was  the  first  teacher  who  be- 
lieved undoubtingly  in  the  power  of  love  and 
sympathy. 

Froebel  says,  "  The  Pestalozzian  method  sets 
man  forth  on  his  endless  path  of  development  and 
culture,  bound  to  no  time  and  no  space ;  a  develop- 
ment to  which  there  is  no  limit,  no  end." 

But  not  until  all  these  gleams  of  light  were 
focussed  in  the  mind  and  soul  of  Froebel,  did  they 
kindle  into  the  flame  of  genius.  Fused 'in  that 
fire,  they  became  a  scheme,  formulated,  harmo- 
nized, and  expressed.  Froebel  was  the  first  to 
construct  a  plan  by  which  the  free,  spontaneous 
activity  of  childhood  is  regulated  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  the  whole  natural  world  unconsciously  is, 
and  as  the  world  of  human  nature  would  always 
be,  were  it  not  for  the  disturbing  element  of  the 


FROEBEL'S    EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       269 

personal  will,  which  comes  in  conflict  with  the 
laws  of  nature.  It  is  the  first  system  which,  after 
discovering,  follows  the  inherent  law  of  human 
development,  — the  complete  growth  and  balance 
of  all  the  natural  powers. 

Froebel's  educational  philosophy  has  its  mystic 
side,  which  makes  it  incomprehensible  to  some 
minds.  His  symbolization  sometimes  seems  fan- 
ciful, and  its  tendency  unpractical ;  the  analogies 
by  which  he  inculcates  truth  are  sometimes  vague 
and  hidden,  and  some  minds  recoil  from  them  as 
from  a  dream  or  fantasy.  Much  of  what  he  speaks 
is  outside  our  clearly  outlined  understanding,  as 
the  Greek  idea  of  harmony  and  quantity  is  still 
vaguely  comprehended.  Froebel's  mind,  in  many 
ways,  was  of  the  Greek  type.  He  reverenced  the 
subtle  laws  and  processes  of  nature,  and  made 
them  a  constant  appeal  in  his  educational  deduc- 
tions. As  a  child  of  nature  he  connected  man 
with  all  the  elements  of  creation,  even  the  inor- 
ganic ones  ;  he  saw  him  as  a  part  of  the  earth, 
subject  to  its  laws,  coming  from  and  going  back 
to  it,  always  in  contact  with  it ;  his  earthly  life  an 
outcome  of  physical  nature,  whose  every  product 
stands  in  close  relation  to  him.  Everywhere  is 
going  on  a  perpetual  interchange  of  material. 
The  magnetic  forces  of  the  earth,  its  tides,  its 
heats  and  colds,  its  depressions  and  elevations,  all 
its  pulsations  and  fluctuations,  are  mirrored  in  the 


2/O      THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

earthly  life  of  man.  Men  are  bound  up  with  one 
another,  all  generations  together ;  for,  from  first 
to  last,  the  great  Chemist  has  fused  them,  made 
them  the  elements  of  the  atmosphere,  tied  them 
to  mighty  planets,  crystallized  them  in  gems, 
smelted  them  in  ores,  built  them  into  all  the  king- 
doms of  nature.  In  all  these  transformations,  one 
and  the  same  law  governs  every  atom  and  every 
star.  The  full  understanding  of  all  man's  analo- 
gies and  correspondences  with  nature,  and  with 
the  mighty  influences  of  the  divine  nature  which 
enspheres  him  in  its  immanency,  as  well  as  in  its 
transcendency  (for  God  is  man's  environment), 
may  well  occupy  his  immortal  life.  The  eternal 
search  after  these  secrets  leads  us  on  to  the  solu- 
tion of  that  mystic  symbolism  which  interprets 
man  to  himself. 

As  a  boy,  Froebel  would  lose  himself  in  pro- 
found meditation  upon  the  laws  of  the  universe,  or 
the  cause  of  organic  life  in  nature.  "  From  star- 
shaped  blossoms,"  he  says,  "  I  first  learned  to 
understand  the  law  of  all  formation,  and  it  is  no 
other  than  the  reconciliation  of  opposites.  For 
example,  each  of  the  petals  which  form  the  corolla 
within  the  calyx,  has  another  petal  opposite  it, 
and  between  these  opposite  petals  there  are  others 
which  connect  them.  A  humble  little  flower 
taught  me  dimly  to  suspect  the  secrets  of  exist- 
ence, the  mysterious  law  of  development  which  I 


FROEBEL'S    EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       2/1 

afterward  learned  so  clearly."  He  perceived,  also, 
that  one  part  is  always  sub-related  or  super-related 
or  correlated  to  another,  and  in  all  organic  life 
there  exists  a  segregation  and  an  aggregation ; 
also  the  different  parts,  by  means  of  connecting 
transitions,  make  up  a  harmony  of  the  whole, 
unity  as  the  sum  of  infinite  variety.  He  saw  this 
reconciliation  of  opposites  in  the  animal  body,  also 
in  the  crystal  forms  of  minerals,  and  that  all  these 
separate  kingdoms  have  points  of  transition  by 
which  they  interchange,  one  feeding  the  other,  or 
both  joined  by  a  more  intimate  unification,  as  in 
the  chemical  process.  He  perceived  this  law  car- 
ried out  through  the  universe  in  the  greatest  as 
well  as  the  smallest  organisms,  in  the  spiritual 
as  well  as  in  the  material  world  ;  and  this  unity  of 
development  through  the  reconciliation  of  oppo- 
sites, he  discovered  to  be  the  one  fundamental  law 
of  the  universe,  out  of  which  all  other  laws  for  the 
world  of  inner  as  well  as  outer  phenomena  spring. 
In  the  life  of  the  human  soul  the  same  continual 
adjustment  of  opposites  is  repeated  for  the  unity 
of  life.  God,  nature,  and  man,  an  inseparable 
whole,  nowhere  completion  but  the  eternal  devel- 
opment of  all  things,  continual  resurrection,  and  at 
the  bottom  of  this,  all-pervading  law,  an  all-work- 
ing unity  conscious  of  itself,  an  eternal  personality 
which  is  God. 

As  a  child  of  nature,  man  is  a  fettered,  undis- 


2/2     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ciplined  being,  striving  for  self-mastery.  His 
powers  can  be  unfolded  gradually,  in  uniform  and 
definite  order,  in  accordance  with  a  law  whose 
symbol  is  a  circle,  having  unity  for  its  centre  and 
diversity  for  its  circumference.  This  beautiful 
circle  or  symmetry  of  development  demands  activ- 
ity as  its  condition,  and  this  must  be  regulated  and 
organized,  and  the  surroundings  wisely  adjusted, 
that  the  balance  of  growth  of  the  faculties  may  be 
preserved. 

As  a  child  of  man,  the  young  citizen  of  the 
world  enters  the  realm  of  freedom,  self-knowledge 
and  conscious  personality.  He  cannot  wholly  es- 
cape from  his  inheritance,  yet  he  must  struggle 
to  become  master  of  himself  as  well  as  of  outward 
nature.  Man  alone  is  compelled  to  mount  by  his 
own  exertions,  through  many  errors,  to  the  heights 
of  his  aspiration  ;  but  in  all  that  he  does  or  pro- 
duces, nature  must  show  him  the  pattern.  These 
patterns  are  to  him  symbols  of  truth,  visible  signs 
of  the  invisible,  until  he  becomes  capable  of 
immediate  apprehension. 

In  the  play  of  children  we  see  the  nature  of 
mankind  expressed.  Its  past  and  future  life 
passes  unconsciously  through  the  soul  of  the 
child,  groping  to  find  the  leading-strings  of  the 
labyrinth  which  leads  to  the  fulfilment  of  the  pur- 
pose of  his  being.  There  is  no  art  which  is  not 
instinctively  attempted  by  children  in  their  plays, 


FROEBEL'S    EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES 


and  with  these  rudiments,  the  first  germs  of 
science  show  themselves  in  the  desire  to  know. 
The  child  says  continually,  why  ?  how  ?  To  fash- 
ion himself,  to  fashion  the  world,  is  the  task  of 
the  individual  as  well  as  of  humanity.  The  first 
utterances  of  the  child  are  movements  ;  all  develop- 
ment must  go  on  through  movement,  and  physical 
development  takes  the  lead.  The  child  thrusts 
out  its  limbs,  runs  hither  and  thither,  touches, 
handles,  examines  everything  with  restless  hands, 
and  is  driven  by  his  impulses,  which  are  nature's 
agents,  in  the  education  of  its  bodily  powers. 
The  organs  of  the  body  must  have  developed  to 
a  certain  extent  before  they  can  serve  as  instru- 
ments for  the  mind.  When  the  child  has  ac- 
quired the  use  of  its  limbs  and  senses,  it  will 
begin  to  make  all  manner  of  experiments  out  of 
its  newly  awakened  desires  to  know.  It  knocks 
objects  together,  tastes  them,  tears  them  to  pieces, 
and  by  hundreds  of  experiments  searches  out 
their  nature  and  uses.  Then  he  begins  to  com- 
pare one  thing  with  another,  and  arrives  at  a 
perception  of  size,  form,  color,  number,  etc.  In- 
scruction  in  observation  must  furnish  answers  to 
his  inquiries.  How  brightly  his  eyes  will  sparkle 
at  every  fresh  discovery  !  He  occupies  himself 
with  the  relations  of  space,  size,  and  number,  just 
as  mankind  began  with  a  knowledge  of  nature 
gained  by  observation  and  experiment,  and  lead- 


2/4      THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

ing  to  mathematical  conclusions.  As  a  child  of 
man,  the  young  human  being  also  has  an  instinct 
of  fellowship.  He  does  not  like  to  be  alone.  He 
wants  the  society  of  his  own  kind,  and  should  be 
with  children  of  his  own  age.  The  family  ties 
illustrate  for  him  all  larger  social  relations,  and  if 
they  are  strengthened,  all  his  right  relations  to 
man  are  strengthened  ;  for  in  the  love  of  his 
family,  his  relations  to  father,  mother,  brother,  and 
sister,  all  his  relations  to  man  and  to  God  are 
incipient.  His  mother's  love  is  the  pattern  and 
symbol  to  him  through  life  of  the  purest  and  ten- 
derest  love,  the  love  of  God.  All  the  conscious 
utterances  and  aspirations  of  man  have  risen  out 
of  unconscious  ones,  and  every  conception  of  the 
mature  mind  has  its  root  in  some  blind  impulse  of 
unconscious  childhood  ;  everything  ascends  from 
symbols  to  ideas,  and  as  Pestalozzi  says,  "  There 
is  nothing  in  the  mind  which  has  not  passed  into 
it  through  the  senses." 

But  education  must  hold  out  to  the  instinctive 
feeling  and  activity  of  childhood  the  necessary 
guidance,  and  the  fit  material  to  work  upon.  The 
problem  of  the  world  is  an  educational  one,  the 
solution  of  which  is  proceeding  according  to  fixed 
divine  laws,  and  must  follow  the  plan  of  nature. 
The  young  child  without  forethought,  conscious- 
ness, or  artificiality,  exhibits  the  systematic  regu- 
larity, the  logic  of  nature's  development  process, 


FRO EB EL'S   EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       2?$ 

just  as  the  simplicity  of  the  common  wild  plants 
shows  the  plan  and  working  of  nature  more  clearly 
than  the  complexity  of  the  cultivated  plants. 
Through  the  utterances  of  childhood  we  arrive  at 
the  key-note  of  the  natural  order  of  child  devel- 
opment ;  methods  of  education  should  therefore 
follow  the  systematic  plan  which  nature  follows, 
and  the  outward  practical  means  must  correspond 
to  its  demands.  In  plants  and  animals  we  see  the 
influence  of  cultivation  very  plainly,  and  it  cannot 
be  doubted  that  the  higher  the  culture  of  a  people 
has  risen,  so  much  the  higher  endowments  will  its 
children  bring  with  them  into  the  world. 

As  a  child  of  God,  the  child  forms  his  concep- 
tion of  that  unseen  fatherhood  through  the  ideas 
gained  from  the  knowledge  of  his  own  father  and 
mother,  and  from  an  instinctive  inquiry  into  the 
origin  and  sustenance  of  all  things,  through  his 
tendency  to  look  for  a  cause  and  aim  commensu- 
rate with  the  diversity  and  beauty  of  the  phenom- 
ena presented  to  his  senses  ;  the  growth  of  his 
spiritual  nature  is  the  highest  outcome  of  the 
general  laws  of  development.  The  moral  forces 
of  the  soul  must  be  dealt  with  in  a  manner 
analagous  to  the  cultivation  of  the  intellect.  A 
merely  instructional  method  is  inadequate  to  the 
task.  The  new  method  of  education  must  be 
able  to  determine  the  pupil's  course  of  life  by 
infallible  rules.  Froebel's  observation  of  the 


2/6     THE  SPIRIT  OF   THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

human  soul  are  in  accord  with  the  general  results 
of  modern  psychology.  The  importance  of  his 
system  lies  chiefly  in  its  practical  side,  which  has 
to  do  with  the  cultivation  of  the  feelings  and  the 
will.  Froebel  has  discovered  means  for  disci- 
plining and  developing  the  will,  feelings,  and  soul, 
as  well  as  the  mind  arid  the  body.  The  most 
important  relation  at  the  commencement  of  life 
is  that  between  the  child  and  its  mother ;  there- 
fore, he  wishes  first,  like  Pestalozzi,  to  address 
and  train  mothers,  and  "  The  Mother's  Plays  and 
Songs  "  are  given  by  him  as  the  foundation  of  his 
educational  plan.  Froebel  himself  says  of  this 
"  Mutter  und  Koselieder  "  book,  "  I  have  here 
laid  down  the  most  important  part  of  my  educa- 
tional method  :  this  book  is  the  starting-point  of 
a  natural  system  of  education  for  the  first  years 
of  life;  for  it  teaches  the  way  in  which  the  germs 
of  human  dispositions  must  be  nourished  and  fos- 
tered, if  they  are  to  attain  complete  and  healthy 
development.  Whoever  has  grasped  the  pivot 
idea  of  this  book,  understands  what  I  am  aiming 
at,"  he  says.  The  examples  given  in  the  "  Mutter 
und  Koselieder  "  are  psychologically  based  on  the 
instinctive  life  of  the  child.  The  nature  of  babies 
and  young  children  is  still  much  less  considered 
than  that  of  plants  and  animals,  but  no  one  has 
come  up  to  Froebel  in  his  searching  analysis  of 
every  phase  and  detail  of  their  development. 


FROEBEL'S   EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       2JJ 

Following  the  example  of  modern  science,  he 
studies  the  least  phenomena,  goes  back  to  the 
smallest  beginnings,  and  thus  finds  the  law  which 
lies  at  the  root  of  all  systematic  development. 
A  new  basis  has  thus  been  given  the  science  of 
education,  and  all  parents  or  guardians  of  infancy 
are  called  upon  to  contribute  to  this  science  by 
giving  the  results  of  their  own  observation  of 
child-development . 

The  period  of  the  first  six  or  seven  years  of 
human  life  is  regarded  by  Froebel  as  the  one  in 
which  the  germs  of  all  knowledge  and  action  are 
set.  It  is  confided  to  the  mother.  The  training 
of  mothers  and  governesses  is  consequently  the 
starting-point  for  the  complete  carrying  out  of 
Froebel's  system.  The  true  development  of  woman 
in  all  classes  will  best  be  accomplished  through 
their  training  for  the  educational  calling,  seeing 
that  nature  has  pre-eminently  endowed  them  for 
that  work.  Human  culture  in  all  its  branches  is 
reflected  in  the  instinctive  activity  of  the  child, 
and  responded  to  by  the  instinctive  sympathy  of 
the  mother.  "  Come,  let  us  live  with  our  chil- 
dren," is  the  rallying  cry  of  this  new  gospel  of 
education.  "  Mother,  and  you  who  take  the  place 
of  a  mother,"  says  Froebel,  "  do  not  say  that  your 
child  is  yet  too  young.  Too  young  !  do  you  know 
when  and  where  and  how  the  spiritual  develop- 
ment of  your  child  begins  ?  In  God's  world,  just 


278     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATIOX 

because  it  is  God's  world,  created  by  God,  is  ex- 
pressed a  constant  law  that  is  undivided,  contin- 
uous in  all  and  through  all.  O  mother,  never 
forget  this  !  instruct  your  child  in  the  great  cohe- 
rence of  life,  and  in  accordance  with  its.  simple 
laws.  The  mother,  the  mother-love,  the  whole 
nature  and  being  of  the  mother,  and  her  inner 
union  with  the  child,  is  the  onry  starting-point,  the 
purest  fountain,  the  surest  foundation  of  a  careful 
human  education.  It  is  only  the  mother  who  in 
her  devout  thought  and  spirit,  in  her  union  with 
God,  with  equal  love  for  both  sexes  of  humanity, 
can  early  grasp  and  comprehend  the  individ- 
uality of  each.  And  thus  in  the  first  child-tending 
appears  a  loving,  confiding,  faithful  spirit,  with 
reliant  effort  and  devout  thought,  —  in  union  with 
God. 

Froebel  took  the  child  from  the  school,  from  the 
home,  into  the  garden,  into  the  free  air,  into  the 
intimacy  with  plant  life,  into  the  world  of  beauty 
and  peace  with  outward  nature.  He  lets  the  dear 
old  nurse  Nature  teach  him  by  the  rippling  brook, 
by  the  wind-chased  clouds,  by  the  flowers,  and  by 
the  insects,  by  the  singing  and  the  nested  birds  ; 
and  thus  taught,  he  gains  an  indomitable  belief  in 
the  divine  spirit,  an  immutable  trust  in  the  fatherly 
care  of  God.  He  interprets  for  them  the  symbolic 
language  of  nature.  "All  things  are  parables," 
said  Goethe.  Outward  phenomena  have  more  to 


FROEBEL'S    EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES      2/9 

do  with  the  spiritual  perceptions  than  with  the 
bodily  senses.  Our  best  learning  is  unconscious  : 
the  voices  of  wind  and  water,  color,  form,  and  sound 
are  our  best  instructors,  and  convey  to  the  soul  its 
truest  nourishment.  Even  young  babies  should 
be  brought  into  contact  with  the  elementary  forces 
of  nature,  and  spend  the  greater  part  of  every 
seasonable  day  in  the  open  air.  Froebel  strove  to 
attach  to  his  work  at  all  times  the  agency  and  in- 
fluence of  women,  and  organized  young  women 
into  classes  for  special  training,  everywhere  pro- 
claiming women  to  be  the  true  educators  of  the 
race,  and  that  in  fitting  themselves  for  their  mis- 
sion as  teachers,  they  would  most  directly  and 
effectively  improve  and  elevate  themselves.  He 
exalted  the  idea  of  the  mother,  and  recognized  the 
real  motherhood  of  those  who  gave  the  mother- 
love  and  care  to  children  not  their  own. 

He  would  educate  the  mother  and  all  who  fill 
the  place  of  a  mother  by  consecration  and  initia- 
tion into  an  intelligent  system  of  early  education. 
He  believed  the  art  of  teaching  to  be  the  highest 
art,  and  that  in  no  way  could  one  educate  himself 
so  well  as  by  educating  others.  Froebel  would 
dispense  for  some  time  with  all  printed  manuals 
for  the  child,  and  find  in  the  natural  activity,  the 
play-impulse,  the  motive  and  method  .of  all  mental 
and  moral  as  well  as  physical  growth.  While  he 
agrees  with  Pestalozzi  that  the  home  and  the 


28O     THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

mother  are  the  God-indicated  place  and  protection 
of  the  child,  he  yet  believed  that  the  child  should 
have  short  periods  each  day  of  social  companion- 
ship with  other  children,  under  the  regulation  of  a 
wise  and  sympathetic  guardian.  He  relies  on  the 
intuitive  method  in  teaching  anything  new,  and 
goes  beyond  mere  inspection  and  handling,  to 
actual  doing,  to  real  experience  of  knowledge,  thus 
laying  the  foundation  of  every  common  occupation 
of  life.  He  utilizes  the  child's  instinct  for  motion 
and  construction,  to  develop  those  aptitudes  which 
make  the  artist  or  the  artisan,  so  that  uncon- 
sciously, by  organized  play  and  occupations,  a 
habit  of  productive  labor  for  just  and  benevolent 
ends  is  formed  in  childhood. 

Froebel  also  believed  in  national  education. 
His  fundamental  idea  is  to  educate  man  to  free- 
dom; he  who  can  develop  himself  is  free.  A 
people  to  whom  this  possibility  arrives  may  be 
called  a  happy  people.  In  his  last  address,  he 
said,  — 

"  I  have  the  pleasure  of  presenting  to  you  an  idea 
which  is  great  and  holy  ;  an  idea  whose  realization 
must  lead  to  the  happiness  of  man.  Fate  decided 
upon  me,  and  chose  me  for  its  bearer  beforehand. 
It  showed  me  the  importance  of  an  education  con- 
formable to  nature,  by  giving  me  bitter  experience 
and  privations,  while  the  early  loss  of  my  mother 
threw  me  upon  self-education.  What  one  has 


FROEBEL'S    EDUCATIONAL    THEORIES       281 

been  obliged  to  contend  with  bitterly,  he  wishes 
to  soften  to  his  fellow-men.  Thus,  the  necessity 
of  self-education  led  me  to  the  education  of  my 
fellow-men.  To  strive  for  this  is  the  aim  of  my 
life,  and  will  be  my  companion  to  the  grave. 
Make  allowance  for  my  personality,  and  cleave  to 
the  cause,  for  the  cause  is  great  and  important." 

Froebel  says  elsewhere,  — 

"  Education  must  lead  the  child,  must  lead  man, 
to  unification  of  life  in  all  directions,  to  full  unifi- 
cation with  his  kind,  with  society,  to  the  greatest 
possible  union  with  nature  and  her  laws,  to  indis- 
soluble union  with  the  principle  of  all  being,  the 
alpha  and  omega  of  life, — with  God."  The 
corner-stone  of  his  scheme  is  the  family  :  "light, 
life,  and  love,"  he  calls  it;  "love,  the  mother, 
being  the  centre,  as  the  heart  is  the  centre  of  life  : 
hence,  the  vast  significance  of  human  mother- 
hood." Froebel  instituted,  if  we  may  say  so,  the 
science  of  motherhood.  He  called  the  kinder- 
garten a  high  school  for  mothers.  "  Here  they 
learn  the  science  of  childhood  and  the  art  of  lead- 
ing into  true  manhood  and  womanhood.  Once 
a  week,  mothers  and  elder  daughters  assembled 
for  consultation  and  instruction  ;  freely,  without 
reserve,  they  discuss  measures  and  methods,  ex- 
change experiences  and  views,"  or  listen  to  one  who 
comes  to  them  freighted  with  the  suggestions  and 
observations  of  many  ;  till,  by  the  inductions  drawn 


282      THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  EDUCATION 

therefrom,  they  learn  wisdom  and  enthusiasm  for 
the  highest  concern  of  womanhood,  which  is  the 
highest  concern  of  humanity." 

Froebel's  philosophy  is  the  philosophy  of  the 
universe.  His  method  is  God's  method  of  human 
education,  reconciling  liberty  and  law,  and  hang- 
ing all  issues  upon  the  two  commandments,  "  Thou 
shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  mind,  and 
with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  strength,  —  and 
thy  neighbor  as  thyself." 

To  this  formula  of  life  and  growth,  enunciated 
by  One  than  whom  no  diviner  teacher  ever  trod 
this  planet,  who  set  forth  the  child  as  the  real 
kingdom  of  heaven,  who  taught  in  parables  the 
all-embracing  truths  of  nature  and  of  life,  who 
said,  "Consider  the  lilies,  how  they  grow,"  and 
"  Not  a  sparrow  falleth  to  the  ground  without 
God's  knowledge,"  "  Ask,  and  ye  shall  receive," 
—  to  this  formula,  and  these  inspired  maxims  of 
the  great  Teacher  of  the  world,  we  are  hastening 
in  the  spirit  of  our  new  education. 


•       ETHODS 


EACH  ER' 


AND  AIDS 


1 

GESTURES  AND  ATTITUDES 

An  Exposition  of  the  Delsarte  Theory  of  Expression.     By  EDW'D.  B.  WARMAN, 

A.M.,  author  of   "The  Voice,    How  to  train  It,  How  to  care  for  It,"  etc. 

With  over  150  full-page  illustrations  by  MARION  MORGAN  REYNOLDS.  Quarto, 

cloth,  $3.00. 

When  a  man  who,  besides  a  thorough  knowledge  of  his  art,  possesses  natural 
ability  as  a  teacher,  writes  a  book  on  this  subject,  one  anticipates  not  only  a  thor- 
oughly reliable,  but  also  a  thoroughly  practical  work.  In  his  treatise  on  Gestures 
and  Attitudes,  Professor  Warman  has  not  disappointed  us,  and  just  as  far  as  such 
work  can  be  made  practical  he  has  made  this  one  so.  The  ideas  of  Delsarte  arc 
presented  in  words  which  all  may  understand.  It  is  explicit  and  comprehensible. 
No  one  can  read  this  book  or  study  its  one  hundred  and  fifty  graceful  and  graphic 
illustrations  without  perceiving  the  possibility  of  adding  strength  and  expression 
to  gestuies  and  movements,  as  well  as  simplicity  and  ease. 

THE  SWEDISH   SYSTEM   OF   EDUCATIONAL   GYMNASTICS 

By  BARON  NILS  POSSE,  M.  G.     Graduate  of  the  Royal  Gymnastic  Central  Insti- 
tute of   Stockholm.       Formerly  instructor  in   the    Stockholm  Gymnastic   and 
Fencing  Club.     Quarto,  264  illustrations.      Second    Edition,    Revised,  $2.00. 
The  Swedish  System  while  including  exercises  on  apparatus,  differs  from  other 
systems  by  its  independence  of  apparatus,  its  movements  being  applicable  to 
whatever  may  be  at  hand,  and  its  free  standing  exercises  are  such  as  no  appara- 
tus can  take  the  place  of.     Cheapness,  compactness,  adaptation  to  a  great  variety 
of  movements,  and  to  the  use  of  many  persons  at  the  same  time,  are  the  advantages 
of  the  Swedish  apparatus.     Baron  Posse's  treatise,  which  is  the  only  comprehen- 
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tions.    Chapters  on  physiological  effects  of  exercise,  and  the  muscular  activities 
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meet  the  wants  of  professional  teachers  familiar  with  other  forms  of  gymnastics, 
and  the  general  public. —  ALEXANDER  YOUNG,  in  The  Critic. 

THE   VOICE 

How  to  train  It,  How  to  care  for  it.  By  E.  B.  WARMAN,  A.  M.  With  full-page 
illustrations  by  MARION  MORGAN  REYNOLDS.  Quarto,  cloth,  $2.00. 
The  book  is  intended  for  ministers,  lecturers,  readers,  actors,  singers,  teachers, 
and  public  speakers,  and  the  special  conditions  applicable  to  each  class  are 
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vocal  organs  is  considered,  and  their  legitimate  functions  emphasized  as  illus- 
trated by  their  anatomy,  hygiene,  and  physiology.  The  breathing  and  vocal  exer- 
cises for  the  culture  and  development  of  the  human  voice  are  made  clear  by 
diagrams  as  well  as  descriptions,  and  the  fruits  of  the  author's  long  experience 
as  a  teacher  are  embodied  in  this  eminently  practical  treatise.  —  Critic. 

AN  HOUR  WITH  DELSARTE 

A  Study  of  Expression,  by  ANNA  MORGAN  of  the  Chicago  Conservatory.  Illus- 
trated by  ROSA  MUELLER  SPRAGUE  and  MARION  REYNOLDS  with  full-page 
figure  illustrations.  Quarto,  cloth,  $2.00. 

This  beautiful  quarto  volume  presents  the  ideas  of  Delsarte  in  words  which  all 
may  understand.-  It  is  explicit  and  comprehensible.  No  one  can  read  this  book 
or  study  its  twenty-two  graceful  and  graphic  illustrations  without  perceiving  the 
possibility  of  adding  strength  and  expression  to  gestures  and  movements  as  well 
as  simplicity  and  ease.  Mr.  Turveydrop  went  through  life  with  universal  approval, 
simply  by  his  admirable  "deportment."  Every  young  person  may  profitably 
take  a  hint  from  his  success,  and  this  book  will  be  found  invaluable  as  an 
instructor. —  Woman  s  Journal,  Boston. 


Sold  by  all  booksellers,   and  sent  by  mail,  postpaid,  on  receipt  of  price 

LEE  AND  SHEPARD  Publishers  Boston 


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METHODS   AND   AIDS    IN 'TEACHING   GEOGRAPHY 

By  CHARLES  V.  KING  A.M.  Head-master  of  the  Dearborn  School  Boston 
Price  $1.60  net 

"  This  is  a  work  independent  of  any  geography,  and  may  be  used  by  teachers 
equally  well  with  any  of  the  authorized  text-books.  The  numerous  illustrations 
in  this  volume  are  of  a  practical  nature,  being  generally  diagrams,  charts,  and 
simple  devices,  such  as  a  teacher  may  easily  draw  upon  a  blackboard  to  illus- 
trate the  teaching  of  geography,  and  the  book  will  be  received  as  an  excellent 
addition  to  the  aids  which  modern  instructors  desire  in  their  work." 
EXCELLENT  QUOTATIONS  for  Home  and  School 

For  the  Use  of  Teachers  and  Pupils  By  JITUA  P.  HOITT  Deputy  Super- 
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"  Contains  choice  excerpts  from  the  productions  of  eminent  authors,  at  horn* 
and  abroad,  in  prose  and  poetry.  Poetry  of  the  highest  order,  eloquent 
biographical  eulogies,  patriotic  selections,  recitations  for  young  pupils,  and 
several  pages  of  proverbs,  give  this  book  a  secure  place  in  the  home  and  school." 
CHIPS  FROM  A  TEACHER'S  WORKSHOP 

By  L.  R.  KLEMM  Ph.D.  late  Superintendent  of  Public  Schools  Hamilton 
Ohio  Cloth  $1.20  net 

"  This  work  is  among  the  first  we  have  ever  seen  that  puts  the  young  teacher 
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It  is  thoroughout  based  upon  common  sense.  It  teaches  principles,  but  the 
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instructor  in  our  public  schools,  it  would  work  a  revolution  in  our  methods  ol 
education  and  in  the  results  achieved." —  School  Journal. 

Dr.  Klemm  has  now  in  preparation,  nearly  ready  for  publication,  his  second 
volume,  entitled  "  Chips  from  Educational  Workshops  in  Europe." 
FIRST  STEPS  WITH  AMERICAN  AND  BRITISH  AUTHORS 

By  ALBERT  F.  BLAISDEI.L A.M.  author  of  "Study  in  the  English  Classics" 
"Our  Bodies  and  How  we  Live"  "  How  to  Keep  Well"  "  Child's  Book 
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"  The  plan  of  the  book  is  unique,  attractive,  and  thoroughly  philosophical. 
In  a  general  way,  the  plan  is  to  study  the  text  of  a  few  representative  authors, 
and  not  merely  to  read  about  many  authors.  It  is  to  study  what  great  authors 
have  written,  and  not  what  some  one  has  written  about  them.  Every  thing  is 
made  subordinate  to  this  great  aim.  In  the  first  few  chapters,  the  method  of 
studying  a  given  subject  is  fully  explained  and  illustrated."  —  True  Education. 
METHODS  IN  ZOOLOGY  TEACHING  FOR  BEGINNERS 

For  Teachers  in  Common  Schools  By  WALTER  P.  MANTON  M.D.  author 
of  "Field  Botany**  "Insects"  "Beginnings  with  the  Microscope" 
"  Taxidermy  "  Cloth  50  cents 

Dr.  Manton  has  been  very  successful  in  his  practical  helps  in  various 
branches  of  study,  and  this  manual  will  prove  welcome  to  all  interested  in  this 
subject  The  book  is  clearly  and  concisely  written,  and  the  directions  are  plain 
and  to  the  point,  the  different  instruments  and  tools  necessary  being  fully 
illustrated  and  explained. 
HOW  SHALL  MY  CHILD  BE  TAUGHT? 

Practical  Pedagogy  or  the  Science  of  Teaching  Illustrated  By  LOUISA 
PARSONS  HOPKINS  Supervisor  in  Boston  Public  Schools  Cloth  $1.00  net 

"The  Boston  Herald  "  says:  "  Mrs.  Louisa  Parsons  Hopkins  has  made  a 
careful  study  of  the  science  of  teaching,  and  her  book  will  be  of  the  greatest 
service  to  those  who  are  engaged  in  the  tasks  of  primary  teaching.  She  is  less 
didactic  than  experimental  in  her  methods;  but  the  points  wi.jch  she  makes 
are  those  that  lead  to  success,  because  they  have  been  proved  in  the  school- 
room, and  have  the  authority  of  the  great  schoolmasters  of  modern  times." 

Sold  by  nil  booksellers,  and  •when  sent  by  mail,  ten  per  cent  to  be  added 
for  postage 

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THE. 


LEMENTS- OF -PSYCHOLOGY 


By   GABRIEL  COMPAYRE 

Translated  by  WILLIAM  H.  PAYNE,  Ph.D.,  LL.D., 

Chancellor  of  the  University  of  Nashville,  and  President  of  the 

Peabody  Normal  College 

Price,  $  1. 00    Net  by  mail,  $1.10 

"This  work  is  scholarly  without  many  technicalities;  it  is  modern 
without  the  conceit  of  '  newness ;  it  is  comprehensive  without  being 
vague;  it  contains  only  the  essentials  without  eliminating  the  essential 
of  vivacity;  it  gives  the  results  of  research  without  the  tedious  details  of 
scientific  investigation  ;  it  has  the  inspiration  that  disseminates  psycho, 
logical  truth  ;  it  is  readily  intelligible,  and  does  not  require  any  '  extraor- 
dinary scientific  acumen;'  it  is  reverent  in  its  attitude  to  truth;  it  is 
not  an  encyclopaedia  of  psychological  science,  and  yet  it  is  a  treasury  of 
the  most  important  results  of  the  best  thinking;  it  is  not  designed  for 
the  specialist,  and  yet  it  commands  the  respect  of  specialists."  — Journal 
of  Education. 

PRESERVATION  •••     PRIMARY ••• 
U  •'•  lESSONSiNTHE  [  SCHOOLS 

By  LOUISA    P.   HOPKINS, 

Supervisor  of  Elementary  Science  in  Boston  Public  Schools 

Parts  1,  2,  3  &  4.     Price,  20  cents  net  per  part. 

Complete  in  one  volume,  cloth,  75  cents  net. 

ONE  of  the  well-establ'shed  principles  in  modern  methods  of  impart- 
ing instruction  to  the  young  is  embodied  in  these  useful  educational 
works  by  Mrs.  Hopkins,  namely:  Seeing  an  object  helps  to  think 
about  it,  and  develops  the  power  of  expression.  These  observation 
and  elementary  science  lessons  have  for  their  first  object  the  Cultivation 
of  the  Powers  of  Observation.  Parts  i,  2,  and  3  in  the  interesting 
and  valuable  series  are  already  published,  and  include  within  their  range 
of  primary  instruction  suggestions  on  "  Education  through  Self-Activity 
in  Observation,  Thought,  and  Expression  ;  "  giving  "  General  Directions 
for  Lessons,"  the  "  Programme  for  the  Work  in  Boston  Public  Schools  ;  " 
"Suggestions  for  Lesisons  to  Develop  Ideas  of  Color;"  "Lessons  on 
Form  ;  "  "  Lessons  to  Develop  Ideas  of  Place  ;  "  "  Suggestions  for  Les- 
sons to  Develop  Ideas  of  Size,"  to  develop  "  Qualities  of  Objects,"  etc. 
Part  2  treats  of  suggestions  as  to  how  to  impart  instruction  on  Plant  Life 
and  Animal  Life,  giving  examples  indicating  how  to  utilize  out-door 
material  in  the  school-room;  model  lessons  with  reference  to  "Observa- 
tions of  Animal  Life,'1  including  oral  lessons  on  birds, Itlhngwith  clear- 
ness and  detail  how  the  child  should  be  taught.  Part  3  "  Physical  Phe- 
nomena of  Nature;  the  Human  Body.'1  These  elementary  books  are 
in  harmony  with  the  advanced  intelligence  displayed  in  tNe  highest 
educational  methods  employed,  and  are  of  inestimable  value  to  the 
progressive  teacher  in  meeting  the  actual  requirements  of  our  time. 


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IIFE  fND  WORKS  OF 

*   *   *    HORACE  MANN 

Containing  the  Life  by  MRS.  MARY  MANN,  and  Lectures. 
Reports,  Essays,  and  Miscellaneous  Papers,  edited  by  his 
son,  GEORGE  COMBE  MANN.  Library  edition,  five  vol- 
umes Crown  8vo,  cloth  Price,  $12.50  per  set,  net 
Separate  volumes,  $2.50  each,  net. 


In  response  to  a  continuing  demand  for  the  educational 
writings  of  Horace  Mann,  an  enlarged  and  complete  edition 
is  announced,  consisting  of  his  Life,  by  his  widow,  and  four 
volumes  of  his  works,  edited  by  his  son,  George  C.  Mann 
Soon  after  Mr.  Mann's  death  two  volumes  were  published, 
containing  "  Lectures  on  Education  "  and  "  Annual  Reports  " 
as  Secretary  of  the  Massachusetts  Board  of  Education, 
which  are  included  in  this  edition.  The  collection  is 
enlarged  by  the  addition  of  a  large  amount  of  material, 
including  the  Eighth  Report,  omitted  from  the  previous 
edition,  copious  extracts  from  the  "  Common  School  Jour- 
nal," on  Education,  and  numerous  orations  and  addresses, 
together  with  an  excellent  review  of  Mr.  Mann's  life  and 
works,  from  the  Revtie  Pedagogique. 

These  volumes  are  submitted  to  the  public  with  the  con- 
viction that,  after  the  lapse  of  half  a  century,  their  contents 
will  offer  a  guide  and  an  inspiration  towards  the  noble  work  of 
raising  humanity  to  the  capacity  for  self-government  through 
education.  

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E 


•  •  THE    •        (7EOGRAPH1CAL 

]GI!JpQUE*li...  READERS 

In  Four  Fully  Illustrated  Volumes 

By  CHAS,  F.  KING 

Master  Dearborn  Grammar  School,  Boston ;  President  National  Summer  School, 
Saratoga  Springs;  Author  of  "  Methods  and  Aids  in  Geography  " 

First  Book:    HOME   AND   SCHOOL. 

240  pages.      Over  125  Illustrations.      Price,  50  cents  net.      By  mail,  55  cents. 

Second  Book:   THIS   CONTINENT  OF   OURS. 

320  pages.      Fully  Illustrated,      Price,  72  cents  net.     By  mail,  83  cents. 
Sight  takes  the  lead  as  a  channel  of  perception. —  SPENCER. 

Third  Book:  THE    LAND  WE    LIVE    IN. 

240  pages.      153  Illustrations.      Price,  56  cents  net.      By  mail,  64  cents. 

True  concepts  of  real  geography  can  only  be  formed  through  travel  or  from 
pictures.  Travelling  is  costly ;  but  an  excellent  and  accurate  substitute  is  found 
in  the  pictures  produced  by  the  photographic  camera.  The  photographer  has 
been  round  the  world  and  made  his  report.  We  call  upon  him  to  aid  us  in  tell- 
ing others  what  he  has  seen. 

Supplementary  reading  is  in  great  demand,  but  only  books  which  combine  the 
useful  with  the  interesting  are  worthy  of  being  introduced  into  the  school-room. 

The  four  volumes  of  the  Picturesque  Readers  now  in  course  of  preparation  are 
not  only  intensely  interesting,  but  they  contain  all  the  "  Essentials  of  Geography  " 
in  so  compact  and  vivid  a  form  that  they  can  be  read  by  a  bright  child  often  in  a 
year  as  supplementary  reading  in  school,  or  at  home  in  a  few  weeks,  thus  meeting 
the  great  demand  "for  less  time  in  geography." 

We  call  attention  to  the  following 

POINTS  OF  SUPERIORITY 

1  Ample  use  of  pictures  —  over  100  large  and  elegant  pictures  in  Vol.  i.    600 

illustrations  in  the  series. 

2  All  pictures   made    from   photographs,  photographic   slides,  French  and 

English  designs,  or  by  the  best  American  artists. 

3  Written  in  narrative  style. 

4  Language  adapted  to  children's  comprehension. 

5  Carefully  prepared  by  personal  narrative,  wise  selection,  and  adaptation. 

6  Equally  well  adapted  for  home  reading  and  school  purposes. 
Tf  Properly  graded  for  the  different  classes  in  grammar  schools. 

8  Containing  a  vast  amount  of  information  for  old  and  young,  for  teacher  and 

taught. 

9  A  happy  combination  of  the  useful  and  interesting. 

10  From  these  readers  can  be  easily  taught  Geography,  Reading,   Spelling, 

Dictation,  and  Composition. 

11  All  mere  map  explanations  and  descriptions  carefully  avoided. 

12  Costly  in  preparation,  but  cheap  in  price. 

13  These  books  can  be  used  in  place  of,  or  in  connection  with,  geographies. 

14  These  fascinating  geographical  readers  will  take  the  place  of  the  stupid  sets 

of  map  questions  and  columns  of  statistics. 

LEE  AND  SHEPAKD  Publishers  10  Mitt  Street  BOSTON 


TORIES  AMERICAN  v 

HISTORY 


^^_ 

ihree  Books.     Cloth,  illustrated.     Price  for  each  book,  50  cents.     Board^ 
30  cents  net     By  mail,  35  cents 

First  Series 
STORIES  V!-  AMERICAN   HISTORY.     By  N.  S.  DODGI 

As  a  reading-book  for  the  younger  classes  in  public  and  private  schools 
(by  many  of  which  it  has  been  adopted),  it  will  be  found  of  great  value. 

"  Nobody  knows  better  than  the  author  how  to  make  a  good  story  out 
of  even  the  driest  matters  of  fact.  .  .  .  Here  are  twenty-two  of  such 
stories;  and  they  are  chosen  with  a  degree  of  skill  which  of  itself  would 
Indicate  its  author's  fitness  for  the  task,  even  if  we  had  no  other  evidence 
of  that  fitness.  There  is  no  better,  purer,  more  interesting,  or  more  in 
structive  book  for  boys."  —  New-  York  Hearth  and  Home 

Secotid  Series 

NOBLE  DEEDS  OF  OUR  FATHERS.  As  Told  by  Soldiers 
of  the  Revolution  gathered  around  the  Old  Bell  of  Independence. 
Revised  and  adapted  from  HENRY  C.  WATSON 

"  Every  phase  of  the  struggle  is  presented,  and  the  moral  and 
religious  character  of  our  forefathers,  even  when  engaged  in  deadly  con- 
flict, is  depicted  with  great  clearness.  Thevoung  reader  —  indeed,  older 
readers  will  like  the  stories  —  will  be  ditplv  interested  in  the  story  of 
Lafayette's  return  to  this  country,  of  reininfscences  of  Washington,  of 
the  night  before  the  battleof  Brandywine,of  the  first  prayer  in  Congress, 
of  the  patriotic  women  of  that  day,"  stories  of  adventure  regarding  Gen. 
Wayne,  the  traitor  Arnold^  the  massacre  of  Wyoming,  the  capture  of 
Gen.  Prescott,  and  in  other  narratives  equally  interesting  and  important." 
—  Norwich  Bulletin 

Third  Series 

THE  BOSTON  TEA  PARTY  and  other  Stories  of 
the  Revolution.  Relating  many  Daring  Deeds  of  the  Old 
Heroes.  By  HENKY  C.  WATSON 

"The  tales  are  full  of  interesting  material,  they  are  told  in  a  very 
graphic  manner,  and  give  many  incidents  of  personal  daring  and  descrip. 
ti  >ns  of  famous  men  and  places.  General  Putnam's  escape,  the  fiuht  at 
Concord,  the  patriotism  of  Mr.  Borden,  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill,  the 
battle  of  Oriskany,  the  mutiny  at  Morristown  and  the  exploits  of  Peter 
hrancisco  are  among  the  subjects.  Books  such  as  this  have  a  practical 
value  and  an  undeniable  charm.  History  will  never  be  dull  so  long  as 
it  is  presented  with  so  much  brightness  and  coJor."  —  Philadelphia  Record. 

STORIES  OF  THE  CIVIL  WAR.    By  ALBERT  F.  BLATS. 

DELL,  A.M.,  author  of  "  First  Steps  with   American   and    British 

Authors,"   "  Readings   from   the   Waverley  Novels,"  "  Blaisdell's 

Physiologies,"   etc.      Illustrated.      Library   Edition,  Cloth,    $1.00. 

School  Edition,  Hoards,  30  cents,  net;  by  mail,  35  cents 

An  exceedingly  interesting  collection  of  true  stories  of  thrilling 

events  find  adventures  of  the  brave  men  who  fought  during  t  lie  Civil  War. 

The  author  aims  to  present  recitals  of  graphic  interest  and  founded  on 

fact;  to  preserve  those  written   by  eye-witnesses  or  participants  in  the 

scenes  described  ;  and  especially  to  stimulate  a  greater  love  and  reverence 

for  our  beloved  land  and  its  institutions,  in  the  character  of  the  selection* 

presented.  _ 

LEE  AND   SHEPARD  Publishers  Boston 


SZAXEAUfiJULSUiUUL, 

LOSAHGELl®.  •*''••»  I.. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


JBJECT  TO  FINE  IF  NO 


APR  is  1958  EDUCATION  IJIBRARY 

JAN  11 1982 

DISCHARGE-URL 
NOV  2  5 1981 


30  '81  -JO  flM 
LIB. 


RLlUKNLD  TO 


Form  L9-100m-9,'52(A3105)444 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


A     000  961  937     o 

UCLA-ED/PSYCH  Library 

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L  005  606  1  96  3 


^URMAL  SCHOOL, 

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